Uncanny
by wordstomyears
Summary: Being the twin sister of the most popular boy in school has its perks. But that doesn't mean Reagan Harrington ever felt like she fit in. However when Will Byers goes missing, maybe Reagan will find her place with Will's older brother, Jonathan.
1. Vanished

"Steve, stop it!" The worst part about what her brother was doing wasn't the part where it was unbearably annoying. The worst part was that in the time he took to flick her ear, was the time he should've had his eyes on the road. "Steve, you're going to crash the goddamn car!" Reagan shouted and shoved the boy's hand away from her ear. Steve let out a smug chuckle before he returned his eyes to the road. "You worry too much." He scolded her, as if the girl had done something to warrant being scolded in the first place.

Reagan crossed her arms over her chest as she leaned to her right, pressing her arm against the car window. The girl leaned forward and pressed her nose against the glass. The tip of her nose grew slightly chilly due to the temperature outside. It was too dark to really take in the scenery. The only things you could really pick up were some objects that strayed close to a street lamp. Other than that, Reagan only focused on the blackness of the night.

As the car began to slow down a little when Steve pulled up in a driveway, the darkness was cut through by the light of the convenience store. Reagan removed herself from the glass and looked over at Steve as he parked the car. She lifted her pale hand towards him, turning it over and looked down at her palm before her eyes shifted up back her brother. "Pay up, Wonder Twin." She told him and narrowed her eyes as Steve reached into his pocket.

"Remember, two Coca Colas and one bag of Doritos. And don't think of getting anything else. I know how much it should cost." He warned her, matching the girl's eyes by narrowing his. Reagan couldn't help but chuckle and nodded her head. "I'm impressed you think I have the capacity to steal from my own brother." She pointed out.

It wasn't wrong to think that. Reagan hardly did anything wrong when she could help it, and when she did do something wrong it was usually because Steve talked her into it. She unlocked her door before opening it up and the cool November air welcomed her. She frowned and looked down at the short sand colored skirt she decided to wear. Even if her socks went up just below her knees, Reagan still felt underdressed for the night. Her jean jacket didn't seem warm enough either.

The girl slipped inside the convenience store, her eyes immediately catching the sight of the snacks she was after. She didn't realize how urgent her hunger was until she saw all the snacks in the store. Even if she had her specific instructions, Reagan was quite aware of the temptation. But she had already spent her allowance for the week on beauty products that Carol insisted she had to get herself. Reagan was lucky enough that Steve hadn't spent all his, especially considering she was the one who begged him to stop for a snack on the way home.

She located the bag of chips and two cans of pop. She held the bag between her fingers and the cold cans underneath her arm. The aisles of the small store seemed lonely and it only made sense. This was Hawkins after all. All people did in Hawkins around this time on a Sunday night was wonder about what was on television. Reagan approached the counter, setting down the items in her hands. When her eyes looked up at the cashier, she was quick to bite down her tongue to avoid from yelping.

Jonathan Byers furrowed his brows at the startled girl but began ringing up her purchase. After the dumbfounded look she gave him, the boy decided his best option was to avert his eyes. He initially wanted to say 'Hey Reagan' or something remotely normal to her. Mostly because Jonathan never said anything to her and when he did it was usually one worded replies. There was a desperate need in him to not be weird around her. She didn't deserve it. Reagan was actually nice. She was _definitely_ nicer than her brother, but more importantly she was nice to Will.

He couldn't understand why he was nervous around her. It wasn't like he was afraid of her.

"I didn't know you worked this late." Reagan decided to break the silence, mostly trying to make up for the way he surprised her. But the only times she ever saw Jonathan was at school or his house. She knew he worked at the convenience store but she had never actually been there when he was, and for good reason. "I don't." Jonathan replied, looking up at her. It was a short reply, the ones she must've been used to from him.

The boy almost felt sorry for it and decided that he couldn't just avoid talking to her forever. She was Will's babysitter after all.

"Eric asked me if I could cover." He explained. Reagan nodded her head, knowing that she had definitely been around the store when Eric was the cashier. "Is Will at home?" The girl inquired. Jonathan shook his head quickly, already seeing the girl's concern a mile away. "No, no... you know if he was you'd be there with him. He's been at the Wheeler's all day so... I just figured..." Jonathan shrugged his shoulders. Also he wasn't sure if he wanted to call Reagan. His mother usually handled talking with the girl and this was the first time he had a real conversation with her. "Do you want me to go pick him up? Because I could stay with him until you or your mom got home?" Reagan offered.

Jonathan considered it but then shook his head. "No, we can't–" He stopped himself before he could continue. This is why he never said more than one word to her. He had to catch himself or else he would've just said that they couldn't afford to have her babysit right now. Reagan frowned, looking at him sympathetically. "If this is about being short the last two times, I told your mom that it was no big deal." She reminded him.

"It's twenty dollars, Reagan. Don't you need it?" He asked her, looking up to meet her eyes. Reagan smiled softly, which took Jonathan by surprise. "I don't need the money, Jonathan. It's just spending. I spent my last savings buying these shoes." She looked down at the heeled brown loafers she wore. When she looked back up at him, her face showed no sign of any negativity. It was soft and gentle, but most importantly it was forgiving. Jonathan was temporarily shocked to realize the last time he saw that kind of good-hearted innocence was on his younger brother.

Maybe that's why the girl and his brother got along so well.

"Still." He murmured. Reagan sighed a little when she realized it didn't seem up for debate. She placed the money Steve had given down on the counter. Jonathan didn't even say how much it costed out loud but he wasn't eager on opening his mouth again. He gave her the change, briefly making contact with her hand. It was only then he met her eyes again. Reagan gave him an apologetic look like she was in the wrong here. She picked up the chips and drinks, moving back over to the door. Before she could leave, she looked back at Jonathan.

"I'll see you tomorrow at school. Tell Will I said hi."

She left with a smile, and Jonathan watched her until she was out of the store.

* * *

"Your roots are showing." Mrs. Harrington reminded her daughter as Reagan puffed out her curls in front of the bathroom mirror. Reagan frowned and looked over at her mother. "Are they?" She asked nervously, leaning into the mirror to inspect the part in her hair. Her mother smiled softly before moving over and stepping inside the bathroom. She took the hairbrush off of the sink and began to comb through Reagan's attempts at making her hair curly. "You know your hair is never going to look like Carol's or Nicole's. You don't have to wake up so early to curl your hair or dye it for that matter." She ran her fingers through her daughter's bleached hair, missing the mousy brown hair her daughter used to have.

The girl shook off her mother a little. "I think I look better as a blonde. Carol agrees too." Reagan pointed out, taking the brush from her mother. Her mother frowned,"Why wouldn't she agree? She's the one who pressured you into it in the first place." Mrs. Harrington commented lowly as she exited the bathroom. Reagan frowned,"She didn't pressure me!" The girl called over but she was convinced her mother stopped listening.

Even if she had spent so much time on her curls, they were practically flat by now. Reagan gave up and instead of trying to puff them up again, she just combed her hair out. At least that gave it some waves. The girl put left the bathroom and watched as her brother dashed right in still wearing his pajamas. "Wake up late again?" She teased her brother who rolled his eyes at her. "Shove a sock down your throat." Steve replied and shut the bathroom door. It wasn't long before she heard the shower going.

Reagan made her way downstairs where her mother was making coffee for her father. He sat there reading his newspaper by the table and she watched as he hardly looked up at her when she came into the kitchen. She moved around the table and got the bag of bread to put two slices into the toaster.

The phone rang, sending the girl in a little jump. To say she scared easily was an understatement. Anything that nerved her sent her heartbreak racing. Mrs. Harrington moved over to pick up the phone after setting a cup of coffee down in front of her husband. "Yes?" She asked into the telephone, tensing up when the person talked. "Reagan?" Her mother said, getting the girl's attention as she buttered her toast. The woman held out the phone and the teenager slid over to answer it.

"Yes?" Reagan bit into her toast, chewing her food as the voice replied. " _Hey, you didn't pick up Will last night, did you_?" Jonathan questioned. Reagan nearly choked on her toast, mostly because she could hear the urgency in the boy's voice. She swallowed as fast as she could,"No, no I didn't. Why? Is he not there? Did he stay at the Wheeler's? Did he leave early for school?" Her questions came out fast, as concern built up in her voice until it matched Jonathan's. " _God, I'm so stupid... I should've asked you to pick him up._ " Jonathan muttered his admittance into the phone, and Reagan picked up on the guilt.

"I'm coming over."

" _Wait, what–_ " She hung up the telephone. Mrs. Harrington furrowed her brows at her daughter,"Reagan, is everything okay–" "I'm leaving early for school. I'll see you before dinner." Reagan rushed out as she ran out of the kitchen to pick up her backpack by the door. She quickly slipped on her shoes before adjusting her turtleneck.

"Hey, where are you going?"

Steve leaned over the staircase, his hair wet and a towel wrapped around his waist. He looked down at his sister with a questioning look. "I gotta go. I'll see you at school." She simply said before exiting out the front door of her house.

* * *

He didn't feel alright being left alone in the house. Jonathan felt that he should leave for the station with his mother, but after Reagan told him that she was on her way he knew that he had to wait for her. His mother could probably handle talking to Sheriff Hopper by herself but Jonathan felt on edge being at home. He felt like he should be doing something. Like getting a head start on looking for Will.

A knock on the door jerked him back on reality, and Jonathan looked up from his untouched breakfast towards the door. He got up slowly and made his way over, opening up the door to see Reagan with a worried look on her face.

She was breathless and covered in a light coat of sweat, mostly because she ran all the way over to his place. Instead of saying anything the girl shoved backpack into Jonathan's arms. He clumsily held it, almost having letting it dropped. Reagan desperately unzipped her bag, swishing around the papers and textbooks until she finally found it.

Reagan pulled out her inhaler, shaking the device before taking a puff. Her heavy breathing slowed as she took another puff. Jonathan realized as his confusion wore off and he waited for the girl to catch her breath. "I shouldn't have ran." She shook her head and Jonathan took a step to the side to let her in. Reagan walked in, turning back to take her backpack back from him. "You didn't have to run all the way here." Jonathan pointed out simply.

"I'm worried." She explained as she set down her backpack on the floor. Reagan was already comfortable in the Byers home and didn't waste another second before going down the hall to Will's room. She stopped at the open door and looked inside the empty bedroom with a frown. "Where are you?" She mumbled at the empty room, as if it could talk and give her the response she wanted.

Jonathan just watched the girl as if he was seeing her for the first time. It was odd to for him to actually be alone with her, mostly because he had never really had been before. "You didn't have to come over, you know. You should head to school. You'll miss class." He felt the need to remind her of that. He knew Reagan usually cared for stuff like that. Whenever she babysat Will, she would always bring her homework over if she had any.

"Will is more important." She justified her actions even though she knew her parents would kill her if they found out. Her mother might understand though Reagan was sure her father wouldn't. Jonathan eyed the girl curiously, noting how she said the words so seriously.

It was an unwavering firmness he wasn't used to seeing the soft girl.

* * *

"You really didn't have to come out, Reagan." Joyce assured the girl, almost feeling as bad as her son looked for bringing the girl into all the commotion. The woman looked at the girl softly before slipping one of her jackets over the girl's petite frame. Reagan had left her house in such a rush that she forgot a jacket. Her turtleneck was warm enough but the sleeves only went down to her elbows.

She shrugged her shoulders a little,"It's not a big deal, Joyce." Reagan assured the woman, slipping her inhaler into the coat pocket in case she needed it. "Thanks for lending me the coat." The girl thanked her, adjusting the dark brown material so it hung comfortably. Jonathan had slipped on his jacket too. He looked over at his mother and Reagan and raised his brows.

"We going?"

The teenaged boy gestured vaguely towards the door and the three of them made their way towards it. Joyce was a little uneasy, but she nevertheless still hoped that Will would be close by. The mother would know if he was gone and a part of her knew with all her heart that he wasn't. He couldn't have just disappeared into thin air, or that's what she convinced herself.

Reagan picked up onto the woman's nerves and linked arms with her as they braved the November air. Jonathan walked a few paces ahead of the two, leading the way to the first place they knew would go.

Castle Byers.

Joyce looked up from the fallen leaves on the ground to Reagan. "Thank you." She felt like she hadn't said it enough. The woman had bumped into the girl briefly ages ago when she was putting up flyers all over the center of Hawkins with her new babysitting service. Reagan was younger and looked so proud of it too, confidently telling Joyce that she was starting her own business. When Joyce asked about the girl's customers, as soon as she heard the reply that Reagan had none so far, she knew she wanted to be the first.

It worked out too considering Jonathan desperately wanted to get a job. He couldn't stand his mother working for hours on end and it still never being enough. She didn't have the heart to deny him any longer of wanting to help out and Reagan's prices were mostly manageable, especially considering she got the first customer discount.

"You're welcome." Reagan felt no need to be thanked but she knew Joyce was going to take a no, especially since she couldn't help but noticed that holding onto Joyce's arm was one of the few things keeping the woman grounded from losing it. It was easy to want to lose it, Reagan imagined. Especially when you didn't know where your kid was.

The walk to Castle Byers wasn't a long one, considering it was located not too far away from the house. Joyce unlinked her arm from Reagan, moving past her eldest son as soon as the small structure came into sight. Reagan caught up with Jonathan and the boy briefly looked over at her. "Let's split up." He suggested, and went wandering off in one direction towards a cluster of trees.

"Will?" Jonathan was the first one of them to call out. Reagan watched as Joyce marched up to the entrance of the little hut and looked disappointed when she lifted up the sheet. "Will!" Jonathan shouted again, and this time his mother joined in as she moved away from Castle Byers.

Reagan couldn't help it. She went up to the structure and watched as the sheet blew briefly in the wind. The girl lifted it up before stepping inside and her eyes scanned over everything. Will's drawings were the first to catch her eyes, and she studied the many adventures of his campaigns that he spent time drawing out. Her eyes shifted to the toy lion that was tucked underneath the blanket and she frowned sadly as a memory came back to her.

* * *

 _"You know... you're the first girl that has ever come in here." Will admitted nervously, looking up at the girl. He still wore a familiar smile on his face, on that Reagan must've been used to by now. The fresh summer air breezed over them gently and Reagan raised a brow with a chuckle. "Apart from my mom, of course." The young boy quickly corrected himself, giving Reagan the answer she was expecting. Castle Byers was an exclusive place too. Limited mostly to just Will because it was where he escaped when he wanted to be alone._

 _"You still remember the password, right?" The boy questioned her and Reagan nodded her head. "Of course. Radagast, yes?" She asked carefully, knowing that Will had gone over it before they left the house but there was so many characters in Tolkien's books that often she had gotten them confused. No matter how many times she read the books too._

 _Will lifted the sheet for her,"You may enter." He chuckled as the teenager slipped inside and he followed behind her. "So this is where you constantly run off to?" Reagan asked, looking back at the boy. Will gestured for her to take a seat down on the makeshift bed he had going on and the girl gently plopped herself down on it. He nodded his head with a shrug,"It's quiet out here." He sat, laying back. Reagan joined him, her blonde locks pooling around her head as she laid back._

 _For a moment, she decided to be silent._

 _The only noises that the two heard were the sound of their breathing and occasional rustles of leaves and branches from the warm wind. The sun was clearly starting to set over Hawkins as the golden rays grew darker into an orange glow. They were both quiet for a few moments until Will decided to speak up. "What am I going to do when you leave?" Will asked, turning his head to look at her._

 _Reagan looked over, her eyes soft as she studied the young boy's face. "You mean college?" She asked and he nodded his head a little. "You know that's not for a long time, right? You'll be older by then." Reagan reminded him. Will knew it was true but it didn't feel right. "But both you and Jonathan will be leaving." Will insisted. She almost smiled, mostly because the boy was putting her to an importance as same as family._

 _"You don't need a babysitter forever, Will. You'll grow out of me one day, and as for Jonathan–" She didn't know if she could comment on a boy she hardly knew. Reagan wished she knew him better, only because he was always around either the school or his house. He had his camera in hand, seeming so content just to capture life. The girl saw how he was with his brother, so loving which was different from the fights she usually got in with hers. "Jonathan would never leave you behind. You're his brother. He'll visit you as often as he can, and miss you so much." Reagan decided that would be a reassuring enough answer._

 _He nodded his head a little once more, smiling faintly as he rolled his head back over to look up at the roof of the structure known as Castle Byers. "You'll visit too, right? You'll miss me too?" Will asked carefully, almost afraid her answer would be 'no'._

 _"I'll miss you, Will." Reagan assured him._

* * *

"Reagan?" Jonathan's voice broke through her memory, and he stood by the entrance of the fort, lifting the sheet. He studied the girl as she clung onto Will's toy lion. She seemed dazed, almost out of it. It was only his voice that got her eyes off of the lion.

She looked up, her eyes gently but not in the way that they were kind, but in the way that they were fragile. Reagan's lips parted to explain herself but she couldn't find the right words to say to make the situation better. Jonathan moved over to hesitatingly, making the decision to put his hand on her shoulder. "He's not here."

Once again, his voice pulled her further into reality as Reagan nodded her head briefly and set the toy lion back down in its place. She then straightened back up and Jonathan studied her briefly again before asking,"Are you okay?" There was something worrisome about the way she looked right now. As if her concern was making her dizzy. Reagan wanted to speak but her words weren't finding her.

Instead of saying what she wanted to say, the short girl just pressed her forehead against his chest and Jonathan realized what she was doing only when she wrapped her arms around his torso. She was at the right height for him to put his hand gently on the back of her head and he wrapped an arm around her too, returning the hug mostly because he knew that's what she needed right now.


	2. A Stormy Night

_Have you seen me?_

The words were almost frightening to Reagan. She didn't like to think of Will wondering by himself, lost. Reagan didn't even want to think of the worst possibility yet. Joyce was arguing on the phone, mostly due to the fact that she couldn't get through to her ex-husband. Regan stayed quiet, shifting through photos of Will for the poster her and Jonathan were making.

"Bitch!" Joyce hung up the phone forcibly, earning the attention of both teenagers. Joanthan perked his head up, noticing the visible shock on Reagan's face. He was quite sure she had never heard his mother swear before, and was possibly sure that her own mother never used language like that around the house. "Mom." The boy said, gaining her attention. "What?" Joyce asked, still a little angry.

Jonathan looked over the woman with soft eyes. "You have to stay calm." He reminded her. Jonathan couldn't let her freak out now. Reagan was already on the verge of complete and utter worry, and he knew that if his mother went, so did she. Joyce let out a soft chuckle before trying to reach Lonnie again.

"I'm sorry." Jonathan whispered to Reagan, but the blonde just shook her head. "It's okay." She quietly replied back. Joyce lost her temper on the phone again when there was no answer from Lonnie, and the voicemail cut her off. She was about to yell even louder at the inanimate object when Jonathan cut her attention. "Mom." The teenager began. He stood up, peering out the window. "Cops."

All three of them rushed outside, both hanging onto their breaths as they saw Sheriff Hopper exit his car. The minute the sight of Will's bike came into view, the worst thought entered their minds.

Once Joyce let the three officers in, Reagan stuck by Jonathan, hoping to stay out of the way as Hopper looked around the house. "It was just lying there?" Joyce proceeded to question the sheriff. "Yeah. Cal?" Hopper barely looked at the small woman, gesturing off for his partners to begin searching the house. "Did it have any blood on it, or–" "No, no, no, no, no..." Hopper dismissed Joyce's notion.

"If you found the bike out there, why are you here?" Jonathan asked the sheriff. "Well he had a key to the house, right?" Hopper pointed out. "Yeah." Jonathan replied with a slight nod of his head. "So... maybe he came home." Hopper looked around the kitchen, making Joyce frown at the presumption. "You think I didn't check my own house?" The woman stammered. "I'm not saying that." Hopper still didn't look at her, as his eyes caught something in the wall. A small indent.

"Has this always been here?" He questioned Joyce. "What? I don't know. Probably. I mean, I have two boys. Look at this place." Joyce sounded very unsure of herself, mostly because she was filled with worry over Will. Hopper open the door, and watched as the indent matched up with the door handle. "You're not sure?" He asked.

"It hasn't." Reagan spoke up. The small girl was still standing behind Jonathan. She had to peer her head around the boy to tell that to the sheriff. Hopper shifted his view onto her, as if he was seeing her for the first time. "Who are you?" The sheriff questioned. "I'm the babysitter." Reagan replied simply to the man. Sounds of the dog barking outside changed Hopper's attention, and instead of questioning Reagan further, the man deciding to go outside. Joyce followed him with a slight sigh.

Jonathan looked over at Reagan. "What do you mean it hasn't?" He asked her. Reagan shrugged her shoulders,"It... it just hasn't. When I was here Friday I could've sworn it wasn't there. I was in the kitchen most of the time cleaning up and making dinner. I think I would've seen it." She pointed out. Jonathan seemed a little skeptical, but he nodded his head. Part of him did believe her, because she never gave him a reason not to. Blood relations aside.

He looked over at the clock before looking back at Reagan. "What time do you have to be home?" Jonathan asked her. Reagan shrugged her shoulders,"Just before dinner, I guess. My parents are leaving around then." She mentioned. Reagan almost wanted to scold herself, because this was the first time remembering that they were leaving tonight for her father's business trip. Steve and her were supposed to be home for when they left. "Did you tell them you skipped school?" Jonathan furrowed his brows, guessing it was a 'no' already based on the kind of people he knew her parents to be.

Reagan shook her head. "I didn't tell them anything." She admitted. "Wow." Jonathan was visibly surprised by that, making Reagan furrow her brows. "Wow what?" She smiled a little innocently, just proving Jonathan's point. "Exactly. I mean, look at you– you've probably never done anything bad in your life." Jonathan pointed out. She rolled her eyes,"You sound like my brother." She told him.

The boy couldn't help but cringe at that. "Hopefully not." Jonathan commented, earning a laugh from the girl. His eyes went soft at her laugh. It was very much like her smile. Light and delicate, holding no intentions other than happiness. Jonathan stared down at her for a moment before clearing his throat, trying not to get any ideas into his head about Reagan, knowing full well a girl like that would never get any ideas about a boy like him.

* * *

Driving Reagan her home wasn't too terrible. Darkness had just fell, and Jonathan was trying to drive her home as quickly as possible before the storm hit. His mother was nothing but relentless into reminding him that he had to drive Reagan home before the rain hit. Not to mention she had to be home before her parents left. Jonathan looked over from the road, over to Reagan's face, which was currently pressed up against the glass of the passenger window.

"What are you doing?" His voice dragged her back into reality, causing the girl to slam back again her seat. Reagan blushed, before rolling her eyes at her behavior and shaking her head. "Sorry... sorry, it's just something I tend to do... especially at night. Besides, I'm trying to check if it's started raining." She stumbled over her words into a less-than-brilliant explanation to her odd behavior. Reagan hugged her backpack to her chest, trying to hide her face as they pulled in front of her house.

Jonathan stopped the car, taking the key out of the ignition. Reagan unbuckled her seatbelt, about to open her door when Jonathan stopped her by grabbing her elbow gently. Reagan stopped, meeting his eyes with a confused look. Jonathan reached into his jacket pocket and brought out a twenty dollar bill. "It's for the babysitting." He said, holding out the money for her.

Reagan frowned at the sight,"Jonathan– you didn't have to. I don't care." She pointed out. "I– I know, but... I do. My mom does. And I know she'll feel a lot better if she paid you back but she works too hard as it already is so I thought that this could be one less thing for her to worry about and you'd get paid so–" "So what? I don't need the money, Jonathan. You do." Reagan reminded him. It wasn't wrong of her to say that, but Jonathan didn't feel like being denied.

"Please, Reagan–" " _No_." She said firmly, moving his elbow out of his gentle grip. "You got a job because you wanted to save for university. That money should be going towards that, not to me going to a movie on a saturday night with my brother and his friends." Reagan said. She made a good point, and Jonathan was actually willing to listen to her. But then his worst fear came true. The fear that talking to her in the first place posed.

The fear of saying something stupid.

"I didn't think you cared." It was clearly the wrong thing to say, but that didn't register to Jonathan until he saw the look on her face. He had _hurt_ her by saying that. "You honestly think I'm that swallow?" Reagan questioned, but it was too late already for him to say anything back. The blonde was already getting out of his car and the next thing he knew the door was slammed.

Jonathan felt awful, knowing he didn't mean it like that. He knew she cared deeply, about Will and his mom. But he never expected in a million years for her to actually pay attention to details about him like that.

Driving home left an awful feeling in the pit of his stomach. He made it home just in time for the rain. It was a light trickle by the time he got out of the car, and the boy made his way over to his front door, entering his house. Joyce stood in the living room with one of her jackets in her hand. In her other hand, she had a small object enclosed in it. It wasn't until Jonathan took off his jacket and got closer that he realized what it was.

"Give this to Reagan at school tomorrow, will you? Who knows what will happen if she doesn't have it." Joyce passed the girl's inhaler to her eldest son, and Jonathan stared down at the small object when his mother placed it in his hand. One thought immediately came to him at the idea of talking to Reagan after he made an ass of himself.

 _Shit_.

* * *

After changing her clothes, Reagan was finally able to get her mind off of Will. She was helplessly worried for the young boy, but she remembered there were still other things to worry about: homework. That dreaded math problems she had delayed until now because the work wasn't due until Tuesday. Reagan opened up her bag to bring out her math textbook before slipping her reading glasses on. Her house clothes were very different from the way she represented herself at school. At home she usually wore loose fitting clothes that were warm and comfortable, with thick socks. She typically kept her hair braided too.

"Reagan, sweetie!" Before she even got a chance to tackle the first question she had to do, her mother was already calling her down. Reagan sighed before closing her textbook, placing the heavy book on her desk before making her way out of her bedroom. "Can you grab your brother too? Dinner's ready!" It was late for them to be having dinner, but that was mostly because Mrs. Harrington spent a little too much time packing before she started dinner for her children.

She walked down the hall to her brother's room, making sure to knock first. "Steve?" She called, but got no reply. Reagan frowned and knocked again. When she heard no reply, Reagan prayed that this wouldn't be like those other times when she didn't knock and found some girl in bed with him. That boy really had no boundaries. Reagan opened his door carefully, closing her eyes just in case.

When she was met with silence, Reagan opened her eyes to realize the room was empty. She kind of felt stupid for expecting him to be there after she knocked many times but the girl shrugged it off as she expected the ruins of Steve's bedroom. He hardly ever used his laundry hamper. Discarded shirts and sweaters laid in piles around his bed. Reagan cringed as her brother's gross funk filled her nose when she went to clean up. She couldn't help it. She hated seeing his room a mess.

Though Reagan hated it more when she would clean it and Steve would teasingly call her 'Snow White'.

Reagan settled with just shoving his shirts into the hamper, too afraid to go anywhere past that. She was especially going to stay clear of his gym clothes that was for sure, which without a doubt carried the grossest funk of all. Reagan turned her head, her eyes catching the white piece of paper on Steve's pillow.

"Cover for me. Gone to Nancy's." Reagan read the words out loud before rolling her eyes and setting the paper down. Whatever happened with this girl, Reagan prayed with all her heart it wouldn't be like Laurie, or Amy, or Becky. Those were bright-eyed girls who were so convinced her brother was Mr. Perfect and could never do no wrong. While that might be true, it didn't stop Steve from being an asshole. He wasn't mean to them or anything. He didn't even cheat on them. He just didn't care, or he didn't pay attention, or he didn't want them as much as they wanted him.

But Nancy was nice. Nancy was good for him, and she hoped her brother wouldn't screw it up.

She exited her brother's room, making sure to set up the pillows underneath his cover to make it look like a human being was sleeping underneath them. Reagan descended the staircase, seeing her parents all ready by the front door with their suitcases. Her father was already in a suit, and her mother adjusted her earrings. They were going to some fancy dinner with her father's boss before they checked into the hotel, and Reagan could tell her mother was nervous about it.

"I left your food on the table. Where's Steve?" She questioned her daughter as the young girl made her way downstairs. "Steve's busy, so he'll have dinner later." Reagan explained with a small shrug. She didn't like lying to her parents, so whenever her brother made her she always made sure it was a white lie. Because technically, Steve was busy and he would be having dinner later. Mrs. Harrington nodded her head, unconcerned with the whereabouts of her son right now as she was too focused on her husband.

"Do we have to go? I made plenty of more pasta, so we can just stay here and you know it's raining and everything so they'll understand and maybe in the morning you can drive to the conference and we won't have to leave the kids here alone on such a stormy night–" "Honey." Mr. Harrington stopped his wife immediately, knowing how she got when she rambled. It reminded him of his daughter mostly, who did the same thing.

Despite the faults that Reagan show in her father, she never saw any faults in moments like this. Steve was a lot like him. He wasn't always the best, but he made up for it because deep down he really did care. Mr. Harrington pressed his lips to his wife's forehead, calming her down. He looked over at Reagan, that nice and loving man disappearing immediately. "Don't let Steve do anything stupid while we're gone. If he gets in trouble, you get in trouble too. And vice versa." Mr. Harrington warned.

Her mother chuckled a little,"I don't think with Reagan we'll ever have to worry about the vice versa part." She reminded her husband. She then smiled warmly at her daughter before pulling Reagan into a hug. "Be safe, sweetie." Mrs. Harrington gripped her daughter tightly before pulling away. Reagan felt a little sad to see them go, mostly because it was clear to her that they still didn't know about Will's disappearance. The only thing she wanted was her mother to hold her and tell her that everything was going to be alright. Even if it wasn't going to be.

Reagan watched as her parents put on their raincoats, and grabbing an umbrella for them to share. "Be careful driving!" Reagan told her father as he made his way to the driveway. He let in his wife into the car first, before placing their suitcases into the trunk. Reagan stood by her front door the entire time, watching her father get into the car and drive off. The rain made the air cold, so she couldn't stand outside forever. She made her way back inside into an empty house.

When she closed the front door behind her, Reagan let out a breath and leaned her back against the door. Suddenly the lights flickered, which gained her attention. Reagan pushed herself off the door and looked around. The lights kept flickering until she made her way into the kitchen which was finally when the power blowed. The girl frowned as she clung onto the wall until she felt her way to the cupboards. She knew there was a flashlight somewhere in one of the drawers.

She made her way to a drawer, pulling it open and feeling around until she found what she was looking for. "Hallelujah." Reagan mumbled to herself as she switched the flashlight on. The storm must've knocked out the power in her neighborhood, which was uncommon. A lot of people had been losing power in there houses even before this storm. Reagan directed the flashlight around the kitchen, her eyes landing on the spaghetti and meatballs her mother had made her. There were to plates, but with the power out Reagan saw no point in trying to put one of the plates in her fridge for her brother. Instead Reagan just used the flashlight to find some saran wrap.

The girl wrapped up the plate before returning to her own, setting the flashlight down so the light shone onto her plate. She picked up her fork and began eating, not realizing how hungry she was until she got a taste of a meatball.

Dinner didn't last long, as her appetite took care of the plate of spaghetti and meatballs in no time. Reagan made it a task to get every noodle on her plate and was working on a couple of short ones that struggled to get onto her fork when the flashlight began to flicker. Reagan furrowed her brows, dropping her fork in surprise when the flashlight switched off. The fork clattered against the plate and Reagan's hands rushed for the flashlight.

As if hitting it somehow would made it work, Reagan began hitting it.

It was no use, as the flashlight seemingly appeared dead. Reagan frowned as she struggled to get her eyes to adjust to the light. She decided to exit the kitchen, nearly tripping over five different things in the process. It was only then she saw the lights on outside. Reagan moved over to see that the pool lights were on, and that rain was dripping into the pool. At the rate of the rain, it was bound to flood over. She nearly wanted to curse, mostly because she knew her brother had probably neglected to put the pool cover on the last time he used it.

Reagan took off her glasses and made her way outside. She underestimated how hard it was raining. Only a few seconds outside and Reagan was already beginning to get soaked. Her socks were already dripping and her hair was too. The girl was successful however in dragging the pool cover over the water without falling in, which unfortunately has happened to her before. The rain chilled her to the bone, making her clothes heavy and soggy as she made her way back to her house.

The lights began to flicker however, and Reagan frowned. What were going on with the lights? The lights to the pool were even on, which they shouldn't have been. Especially if the power was out in her house. The lights switched off, unsettling her as she tried to slide open the door. Reagan looked up through the darkness, noticing a shadowy figure in her house. She didn't hesitate to scream loudly, stumbling back in the rain. The figure made its way to the glass doors to the pool, making Reagan start screaming again.

She didn't stop screaming until she heard her name being called. "Reagan! Reagan! What is wrong with you?!" Steve yelled over her screams, dragging his sister back into reality. Reagan coughed a little, winded from screaming. Her heart raced but she began to calm herself down once her eyes settled on her brother. "I– I thought you were–" She didn't know what she thought her brother was, and just made her way back inside.

Steve had a look of concern on his face as he wrapped an arm on her as soon as she came back inside, and the boy slide the glass door shut behind him, making sure to lock it. "Let me find a towel... what happened to the flashlight?" Steve asked as he looked around his darkened home. "Ran out of–" Reagan was cut off by the power coming back on. The lights turned back on throughout the house, making Steve smirk a little.

He made his way to go grab her a towel, and Reagan just made her way back to the kitchen, where she saw the flashlight turned on. She reached for it and decided to switch it off, a little weirded out. Steve came down the stairs with a towel in hand, wrapping it around his sister. "Ooh, Mom made spaghetti. Score." He grinned as he made his way over to the table where his wrapped plate sat waiting for him.

Reagan watched as her brother began his dinner and she sat back down in the chair across from him. She didn't say anything at first, mostly because she was sort of freaked from what had happened earlier. Steve pushed around a meatball with his fork, knowing it had to come up eventually. "I heard about Will." The boy muttered, barely catching her attention. Reagan did however hear him, and looked up from her hands over at her brother.

"From Nancy?" She asked, and Steve hummed an answer while he nodded his head. Reagan frowned as she looked back down at her hands. "Is that why you weren't at school today? I told the office you were sick. You're lucky I'm good at forging Dad's signature." Steve pointed out and Reagan smiled small. She was truly glad that her brother had covered for her, like she had done for him so many times. It wasn't exactly something she wanted to make a habit of though. She was the good child after all. "Thank you..." Reagan whispered.

There was something in her voice, something that was on the verge of breaking. Steve eyed Reagan, continuing to play with his food. He eventually gave up on the food and put his fork down. "Are you okay?" He had to ask, because if she wasn't okay, he wasn't okay. It was as simple as that. Reagan shrugged her shoulders a little,"Not really... I... I shouldn't be worried though, should I? He's not even family, but-" "Hey... don't do that to yourself. You have a big heart, which means you should use it. Don't close yourself off." He told her.

"What? Like you do?" She asked gently. Steve rolled his eyes at her remark,"I don't close myself off." He argued. "You do. We're more alike than you know." Reagan argued back. Her optimism and hope for him brought a smile to Steve's face, and the boy stood up from his chair. "Whatever, nerd." He said, but he pulled his sister into a short embrace before reaching over for his plate. "I'm eating in my room!" Steve declared, making sure to make a less than graceful exit out as he knew time was of the essence. He knew Reagan would try to stop him.

"Steve! You can't eat in your room! Steve! It's disgusting! We're going to get rats!" Reagan threw off the towel and raced after her brother as he rushed up the stairs, trying his best not to drop the pasta all over the house.


	3. The Worst Mute

"You cool?" Steve questioned his sister as she opened her locker. She slipped her yellow jacket inside before grabbing her notebook. Reagan turned to look at her brother and shrugged her shoulders. She didn't exactly want to tell him the truth, because she knew he would be upset with her, but she was never one to lie. "I just... couldn't find my inhaler this morning." Reagan explained simply, treating it like it was no big deal.

Steve didn't say anything at first. He just pursed his lips and stared at her. "You... lost it?" Steve tried not to sound mad, but failed when his tone clearly let his disappointment seep through. "It's not a big deal." Reagan was quick to argue. "Wait a second– not a big deal?!" Steve raised both brows,"Are you kidding me?! You don't get it, Reagan. The last time you lost your inhaler you were in the fifth grade. You had to be sent to the hospital. You nearly died."

The girl shut her locker door abruptly. "I'm fine, Steve!" Reagan exclaimed. She instantly regretted shouting when it took a strain on her breathing. For a moment she started to panic when her breath seemed to escape her for a second, but after a couple of breaths she regained control of it. "Reagan..." Steve noticed her breathing and moved forward to touch her but she just took a step away from him.

"I'm fine." Reagan insisted, her voice soft as she looked down into her locker. She didn't want to get mad with him, especially because she knew he was right. This wasn't okay at all but there was nothing she could do about it.

She began walking away, in the direction of her class, when she was stopped by an oncoming couple. Tommy had his arm draped over Carol's shoulders, and he was wearing that same smug smirk everybody was so used to seeing. "Oh, honey, you look so pale today. Did you even wear blush?" Carol switched her binder in her arms to one hand, moving away from Tommy to approach her best friend.

Carol pinched Reagan's cheek, which hurt but the blonde seemed used to it to Carol's actions. Her friend pinched the other cheek, finishing the job and returning her hand to rest on her binder. "Better." Carol nodded her head firmly,"But you honestly are in desperate need of a better lipstick. That one's too pink for this outfit." She said, looking Reagan up and down. "And the hair?"

"My sister's not a doll, Carol." Steve reminded the redhead, a little annoyed with how the girl treated her sometimes. But the girls had been friends ever since the first day of kindergarten, so Steve tried to refrain from saying anything too bad about Carol. She was his best friend's girlfriend as well.

"You're right. A doll has better hair." Carol commented coldly as she turned to look at Steve. He opened his mouth to say something but Reagan cut him off. "Oh please, Steve, like you know anything about hair." She said, gesturing up to his locks.

That kind of response wasn't very typical of the girl, so it earned a laugh from Tommy. He moved between the two girls and draped both of his arms around them. Carol stood comfortably by her boyfriend's side, meanwhile Reagan seemed less than happy that he was touching her. Reagan did manage a small smile, knowing that Tommy barely liked the things she said.

Steve rolled his eyes at his sister, finding it ridiculous she was attacking his hair of all things.

"I wouldn't be too hard on him, Reagan. I'm sure Little Miss Sunshine likes his hair just fine. Isn't that right, Steve?" Carol chuckled as she mentioned Nancy, and Reagan looked at her friend before chuckling along with her. "Aw, look at him, he's blushing." Tommy smirked as he reached forward to poke Steve's cheek. The boy brushed him off before shaking his head at them. "You guys are the worst." Steve told the three of them.

Tommy shrugged Steve's annoyed response off and moved on to the matter at hand. Instead of doing homework last night like he should've, Tommy had called Steve with a brilliant idea. "So we still on for tonight?" Tommy questioned. Steve nodded his head without question, earning some raised brows from Reagan.

"On for what?" Reagan asked, looking between the two boys with confusion written on her face.

Her best friend began laughing a little at her. Carol tossed a curl over her shoulder, staring at Reagan. "Come on, you're not this dense." She reminded the girl. Carol raised her brows when Reagan didn't clue in. "Your parents aren't home." Carol reminded her, hoping it was enough.

Reagan took only a second before it settled in and she immediately shook her head. "You can't be serious. What ever happened to if you get in trouble, I get in trouble too? Dad would not only kill you but he would kill me too." She reminded her brother. Steve shrugged her off,"It's not like they're going to find out, Reagan." He pointed out.

"Not going to find out? Last time we had a party, you fell off the roof like time and broke your ankle." Reagan argued back but Steve shushed her by wrapping his arm around her head and covering her mouth with his elbow. "I'll clean the house for a month." Steve dragged her away from Tommy and Carol before Reagan wormed her way out of her brother's grip.

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest,"And a month's allowance." Reagan said quietly. Steve cringed at her negotiation. "Two weeks." He fought back, pointing his finger at her. Reagan furrowed her brows and narrowed her eyes. "A month." She said firmly.

"Two."

"A month."

" _Two_."

"Three weeks."

"Okay... fine."

"And Steve–" Reagan stopped him before he could return to Tommy and Carol. "Just us. Tommy. Carol. Nancy. No letterman jackets. No cheerleading team. In fact, only two packs of beer and drink only outside by the pool." She laid down the rules, making her brother frown. "Gosh, you are ruthless, Wonder Twin." Steve commented but nodded his head, agreeing to her terms.

She let out a giggle when he agreed, nearly giddy enough to jump. "You know I could've gone for two weeks." Reagan mentioned as they returned to their friends. Steve's jaw dropped just a bit at her words and he shook his head in defeat. "You're going make a great politician, you know that right?" Steve told her. Reagan shrugged her shoulders,"Well, that's the plan, right? Besides I have to squeeze some balls if I'm going to make it anywhere as a woman."

* * *

Nancy and Barb walked down the hallway on the way to class. Barb made sure to test Nancy on the upcoming test she had, knowing full well no matter how smart the girl was she would never go into a test unprepared. Their studying was quickly interrupted when the study notes were snatched out of her hands by one Steve Harrington. Tommy joined up, making sure to cause a mess too as he poked at Barb's ear. Carol and Reagan walked besides each other, books in their hands as they moved to lean against the wall.

"I think you've studied enough, Nance." Steve commented, looking through her notes. "Steve–" Nancy began but her boyfriend was quick to cut her off. "I'm telling you, you know, you got this." It was almost encouraging as he shuffled her cue cards back together. "Don't worry. Now, on to more important matters." Steve introduced. "My dad has left town on a conference and my mom's gone with him, 'cause, you know, she doesn't trust him." Steve explained.

"Good call." Tommy grinned, which made Reagan frown a bit. Steve was making it sound a little harsher than it was... but of course, Reagan never did like to see anything she didn't want to.

Steve looked at Nancy,"So are you in?" He asked, and Reagan noticed his excitement to hear his girlfriend answered. Unfortunately, Nancy looked at him like Reagan had earlier at the mention of their get together that evening. "In for what?" Nancy inquired, looking at Steve. Carol rolled her eyes at the naivety.

"No parents? Big house?"

"A party?"

Carol dinged her response, making Tommy laugh as he looked at Nancy. The brunette frowned however,"It's Tuesday." She pointed out to Steve, hoping he would see some common sense with this. "It's Tuesday." Tommy mocked, making Carol and Reagan laugh at his teasing. Nancy looked slightly embarrassed, so Steve attempted to save her.

"Come on. It'll be low key. It'll be just us." He clarified, knowing he was working with Reagan's rules. "What do you say? Are you in or are you out?" He looked at Nancy, awaiting her answer. She was hesitant, offering him no answer but a simple 'um'.

Before she had to give an answer though, Carol's eyes caught something across the hall. "Oh, God. Look." She instructed and everybody's eyes followed to see Jonathan Byers pinning up a missing poster for his little brother. Reagan frowned as she looked at the boy, knowing well what the other people around her thought of him. "Oh, God, that's depressing." Steve remarked.

Nancy felt uncomfortable, and mostly sympathetic for the boy. "Should we say something?" She asked. Reagan pushed herself off the wall she was leaning on,"That could be nice." Reagan said, knowing that making some cheering up couldn't hurt. Especially from someone as nice as Nancy. She was trying to ignore also what Jonathan had said to her last night, because no matter what he thought about her didn't make him a bad person.

"I don't think he speaks." Carol pointed out. "How much you want to bet he killed him?" Tommy joked. Before Reagan could argue with him on that, Steve beat her to the punch knowing she was hard to deal with when angered. "Shut up." Steve pushed his friend, hoping that would be enough to stop any more mean comments.

Without saying a word, Nancy decided to go with her idea. Reagan stepped forward, looking to the girl who she had hardly spoke to despite the fact she had started dating her brother. "I'll go with you?" Reagan offered. Nancy smiled, a little surprised but she nodded her head.

The two girls went to approach Jonathan, who was nearly done pinning his brother's missing poster on the bulletin board. "Hey." Nancy interrupted him. "Oh, hey." Jonathan turned around, surprised to see Nancy talking to him. He was even more surprised when he noticed Reagan but he quickly avoided eye contact with her, still scolded himself mentally for what he said to her.

"I just..." Nancy began, trying to find the right words to lift his spirits. "I wanted to say, you know, um... I'm sorry about everything." She said, looking over to Reagan. "Everybody's thinking about you." Nancy continued before finally adding,"It sucks."

Jonathan nodded his head,"Yeah." He replied. "I'm sure he's fine." Nancy hoped her words offer some reassurance but she looked to Reagan for some help. She was Will's babysitter after all. "Will's a smart kid. We'll find him." Reagan met Jonathan's eyes for a moment and two looked at each other uncomfortable for a moment. Nancy looked between the two, almost wanting to say something but then the ball rang.

"I have to go. Chemistry test." Nancy explained. She began backing away but looked at Jonathan,"Good luck." She told him. "Thanks." Jonathan nodded his head, watching as Nancy turned to Reagan. "See you tonight." She told her before going back to join her friends. Reagan didn't move quite as quickly though.

"Don't you have class?" Jonathan asked. "English." Reagan nodded her head, looking down at her notebook. "Okay. I'll see you later." Jonathan said simply as he looked back to check on the poster. Reagan was a little disappointed about the awkwardness going on between them, especially since they had started talking. "Okay... see you later." Jonathan could tell by her voice that she was still hurt and he watched as the blonde turned on her heel to walk away from him.

But then suddenly he remembered.

"Reagan!" He called, stopping her. She turned around and looked at him, raising her brows. Jonathan reached into the pocket of his jacket before grabbing the inhaler she had left at his house last night. He reached over and handed it to her. "I wouldn't want you to get hurt or anything without this." He admitted.

She smiled a little,"Thank you. I really need this." She looked down at her inhaler in her hand. She wanted to say more but the principal came over the PA system. "I should go." Reagan said, and Jonathan nodded his head as she started to leave. She walked down the hall in direction of her English class but found herself stopping. Reagan turned back and watched Jonathan leave the building.

It wasn't very normal of her, but Reagan started to think that maybe she should skip school again.

* * *

The second he closed the car door, the passenger door opened. Jonathan nearly jumped in his seat as Reagan piled herself into his car and sat down. She closed the door and then she buckled the seatbelt. Reagan was a little breathless, so she took a quick puff from her inhaler. Jonathan raised his brows at her as she placed her inhaler in her backpack, adjusting it on her lap.

"What the hell are doing?" Jonathan questioned. Reagan shook her inhaler before taking another huff. She then took a deep breath before turning her body to face him. "I'm coming with you." Reagan informed him. "You don't even know where I'm going." Jonathan asserted but she didn't budge. "You're going to Lonnie's."

He furrowed his brows, sitting back in his seat. "How did you know that?" Jonathan asked. "I'm psychic." Reagan dismissed, turning her body back to face the front. He frowned at her words,"This isn't the time for jokes." Jonathan said, a little annoyed with the blonde bursting into his car. Reagan decided to drop the jokes and she looked down at her bag.

"Your mom was trying to call him yesterday. I figure you would want to check him out for yourself though... well, so do I." Reagan said with a small shrug. Jonathan calmed down at her words, turning to look at her. "You're pretty observant, you know that?" He reflected. Reagan smiled at the compliment before nodding her head. "I like to be." She mentioned.

Jonathan put his key in the ignition. "You can come but no talking." He said. "But–" "No talking." Jonathan looked over at her, trying to get her to realize he was serious about this. Reagan reluctantly nodded her head. He then started the car and pulled out of their school's parking lot.

"Can I talk in the car at least?" "Sure."

Even though he had given her permission to talk in the car, Reagan still found herself at a lost for words. She didn't even say anything until Hawkins High School was completely out of their sight. Reagan did decide to speak up finally when they were nearing the edges of town. "Are you mad at me?" Reagan asked. Jonathan shrugged his shoulders at her question. "Look, if you are... I'm sorry. But I want to help. I have to." Reagan pointed out.

"Reagan, if anyone of us should be mad with each other... you should be mad at me." Jonathan confessed, looking her at a little before returning his eyes to the road. "Last night I didn't mean what I said. I didn't mean that you didn't care. I know you do. About Will–" "About you." Reagan cut him off. Jonathan was a little confused at her words, turning his head to look at her.

"About me?" He asked. She then nodded her head at him,"Just in case you didn't know, I care about you too." Reagan made clear, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. Jonathan looked back at the road before nodding his head. "Okay." He said, his voice a little nervous. He didn't know what to say to her now that she made that clear. "I'm going to put on the radio." Jonathan said quickly, reaching over and switching it on to a station he frequently listened to.

The two remained quiet as rock music filled his car. It seemed the right moment for silence between them, as they were settling in for the long drive it took to get to his father's house. He wasn't even sure if Reagan liked this kind of music but she made no complaints. Jonathan no longer to think any presumptions of her anymore, although there was the suspicion that she probably listened to Top 40 only.

As they were just leaving Hawkins, a familiar song for the both of them popped on. The Clash's Should I Stay or Should I Go came onto the radio, both reminding Jonathan and Reagan of Will.

* * *

 _Steam rose up from the pot, gently warming Reagan's face. She gently stirred the pot using a wooden spoon and sighed. It wasn't the most exciting things about babysitting Will. He didn't spend any time with her cooking dinner. Sure he wanted to join her when she was making something sweet like a cake. The time they made Christmas cake was one of the best times Reagan spent over at the Byers household._

 _When she was steaming carrots for dinner, not so much._

 _The task was practically putting her to sleep. Suddenly however music started to blast from Will's room. Reagan nearly fell over, not anticipating such a loud rock guitar sound to be coming out of the boy's room. She took the wooden spoon out of the hot water, lowering the temperature on the stove top._

 _"Will?" Reagan called, moving away from the kitchen to peer down the hall that led to Will's room. The door opened slowly, pouring light from inside his room out into the hall._

 _Will then proceeded to slide out into the hall, nearly tripping over his socks when he bumped the wall. He grinned wide at Reagan, knowing it had been a slow day. She had been here since her parents dropped her off from church and Will had been doing his homework for most of the day._

 _Occasionally she'd help Will with some math problems, but he was a smart kid. Reagan spent most of her time cleaning the house because she had the time to or making dinner with the groceries she had came with. She thought making chicken would be more fun and it was. The vegetable steaming hadn't been. When he saw how bored she looked when he finished his homework, Will had an amazing idea._

 _"Darling you got to let me know." The boy sang, earning a slight chuckle from the blonde. She was confused but couldn't help but be amused at the antics of the young boy. "Should I stay or should I go?" Will made his way over to Reagan, dancing awkwardly. He held out his hands, taking hers in his._

 _He pulled her into the living room before jumping onto the couch. As he began bouncing on the cushions, Reagan tired to get him to stop. "You'll break the couch, Will." She warned, fully prepared to take him off the couch if it came to it. Will let go of her hands, looking almost betrayed. "But this is the Clash, Reagan, you can't kill my vibe during the Clash." Will argued._

 _Reagan rolled her eyes, but a smile remained on her face. "Your vibe?" She teased the young boy, making him frown a little. Will dismounted from the couch a little reluctantly before crossing his arms. "Come on, don't you have a song you'd break furniture for?" He inquired. "I suppose everyone does." Reagan shrugged her shoulders, slowly returning to the kitchen._

 _Will could tell that she wasn't just going to go out and say it so he decided to leave it. The boy returned to his room, to shut off his music. What she said made him curious however. Eventually, Will had the courage to leave his room to make his way to the kitchen._

 _"What is it?" He suddenly asked, gaining Reagan's attention. She furrowed her brows, trying to play dumb,"What?" Reagan said, turning away from the stove top to look at him. Will frowned at the diversion and crossed his arms over his chest. "What's the song?" He asked again. Reagan blushed a little before looking down._

 _"It isn't anything like the Clash." She admitted, clearly embarrassed by whatever it is. Will shrugged his shoulders,"I don't care." He said softly, in effort to make her comfortable for her to share._

 _She smiled a bit, thankful for his caring nature. She wasn't sure if she could say it otherwise. "Uh... it's from a movie. You probably haven't seen it. I mean... it's really up your alley–" "Reagan." Will stopped her before she could start rambling. "You're stalling." He pointed out. Reagan couldn't deny it and turned back to the pot._

 _"What a feeling..." Reagan finally sang,"Being's believing... I can have it all and now I'm dancing for my life..." It wasn't the best singing, but that might have been only due to the fact she practically whispered when she sang. It still managed to bring a smile onto Will's face though._

 _Reagan turned around, and realized when she looked at him that she had never seen him so happy with her before. She couldn't tell if that was a good thing or not. "It's– so embarrassing. God, even Steve makes fun of me for it and I don't even dance but I love this song and the movie and it's awful I even have the poster–"_

 _Will shook his head immediately, dismissing the embarrassment she felt about it. "Reagan, it's okay. It's great that you love it. And you shouldn't listen to your brother. You shouldn't like things because people tell you you're supposed to." He told her. She didn't know why at the time, but his words brought tears to her eyes. Will was probably too young to understand why so she didn't want to burden him with it._

 _But that was all she ever did. She only liked things because she was told she was supposed to._

 _"You're a really smart kid, you know that, right?" Reagan chuckled, trying to ignore how choked up she was about it. Will dropped it for her benefit and chuckled a little. "I'm not that smart." He said humbly. "My brother told me that." Will explained. Reagan furrowed her brows,"Jonathan?" She asked. "No, my other brother." Will joked and rolled his eyes playfully, moving away from Reagan. He went to the drawer and began to take out forks for dinner. "I'll set the table." Will informed her._

 _The girl nodded her head, turning back to the pot. Reagan thought about Jonathan briefly. He barely ever acknowledged her when they were in the same room. She didn't even really know him. But now she wanted to._

* * *

It was raining lightly by the time they got to Lonnie's house.

Jonathan stopped the car, taking the key out of the ignition which switched off the radio. Reagan looked at him as she unbuckled her seatbelt. "Am I allowed to join you?" She asked. He nodded his head, opening his car door. "Just no talking." He reminded her. "As far as they're concerned, I'm a mute." Reagan replied as she exited his car. "Mutes don't talk, you know." Jonathan pointed out as they crossed the street.

"Does that mean I'm a bad mute?" She asked. "The worst." Jonathan smiled a little when he looked back at her but it soon faded by the time he reached the front door. He frowned as he reached up his hand to bang on the door. The television was on inside, but that was no indication if Lonnie was home. He banged on the door,"Hello?" Jonathan called. "You know, there is a doorbell–" Reagan pointed her finger towards it. "Okay, now you're officially the worst mute." He looked back at her.

He continued banging which gained the attention of a young woman. "Yeah." The woman came barging up towards the door, throwing it open. "Can I help you?" She looked the two teenagers up and down, chewing on some gum. "Yeah, is Lonnie around?" Jonathan asked. "Yeah, he's out back. What do you want?" The woman demanded. "To look around..." Not pausing to wait for an invitation inside, Jonathan pushed past the woman inside.

Reagan decided to follow after him but the woman was quick to catch her shoulder. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?" She exclaimed at them, looking to Jonathan. "Hey!" She shouted but he simply ignored her. "I'll be fast." He mumbled as he began searching the house calling for his little brother.

The woman kept quite the grip on Reagan. "Don't you even think of moving." She warned her, making Reagan gulp. The woman studied her up and down before placing her free hand on her hip. "What you got nothing to say to me?" The woman questioned.

"I'm a mute." Reagan squeaked. The woman narrowed her eyes,"Mutes don't talk." She pointed out. Reagan decided her best move was not to reply to that. Instead the girl jumped a little at a thud. The woman pushed Reagan into the next room to find the source of the thud and the two of them faced Jonathan looking at his father.

"Will someone please explain what the hell is going on?" The woman asked, pushing Reagan forward. "Jonathan, Cynthia. Cynthia, this is Jonathan. My oldest." Lonnie explained as he looked back at his son. Cynthia looked surprised, as if that while she knew Lonnie had kids she never expected one of them to be so... grown up.

Lonnie pulled Jonathan into a hug,"Come here–" "Get off me, man." Jonathan pushed his father off, looking to Reagan. The blonde looked a little like a mouse, completely meek ad slightly frightened. Jonathan instantly regretted agreeing to taking her along with him. It was a mistake and she was clearly uncomfortable with this.

"Is this your girlfriend?" Lonnie questioned, staring at Reagan. "This is Reagan. She's Will's babysitter." Jonathan explained. Lonnie took a step closer to Reagan which made Jonathan reach out his arm and block his father from getting any closer to her. "What do you think I'm going to do, huh?" Lonnie frowned at his son.

Jonathan rolled his eyes. "Don't talk to her. Got it? Where's your car? I want to see it." He demanded, looking around the house. Lonnie knew he had nothing to hide, so he lifted his arm and pointed with his thumb behind him. "Out back." Lonnie answered. "But Will's not here. He never has been."

"I need to see it." Jonathan said, gesturing for Lonnie to talk the lead to his car. The man rolled his eyes before leading the way to the back of the house. Before Jonathan could follow him, Reagan grabbed his hand and pulled him close to her. "Please don't leave me with the mean lady." She whispered into his ear, almost sounding like a child. However, when he looked back at Cynthia, he could understand her point of view.

"Come on." Jonathan agreed, looking down at her hand on his before he looked back up at her. He then followed his father outside, still holding onto her hand. When they approached Lonnie's car, Jonathan let go of Reagan's hand to move in front of his father to inspect the car. "Take a look at this beaut. Should've seen it when I got it." Lonnie commented proudly,"Took me a year, but it's almost done."

Lonnie watched as his son ignored him, going straight to checking the trunk of the car. "Really? You want to check up my ass, too?" Lonnie questioned just as Jonathan slammed the trunk closed. "I told you the same thing as I told those cops. He's not here and he never has been." Lonnie repeated.

"Then why didn't you call Mom back?" Jonathan interrogated, marching towards his father. "I don't know, I just... I assumed she just forgot where he was. You know, he was lost or something. The boy never was very good at taking care of himself." Lonnie said simply. "Excuse me?" Reagan piped up, looking up at Lonnie. Jonathan looked at her and shook his head. "Stay out of this." He told her.

Jonathan looked at him,"This isn't some joke, all right? There are search parties, reporters–" "Hopper's not still chief, is he?" Lonnie cut him off. When Jonathan didn't reply, he could only assume the answer was yes. "Tell your mother she's gotta get you out of that hellhole. Come out here to the city. People are more real here, you know?" Lonnie said.

"Are you kidding m–" "Reagan, stay out of this!" He didn't like the idea of yelling at her, but it was more his father cutting his patience than it was Reagan. Jonathan frowned and looked back at him. "And then I could see you more." Lonnie decided to finish, ignoring Reagan's interruption. Jonathan scoffed, making Lonnie raise his brows. "What, you think I don't want to see you?" He asked.

"I know you don't." Jonathan answered. "See, that's your mother talking right there. She even know you're here?" He raised his brow at the teenager. Jonathan didn't say anything again, making Lonnie roll his eyes. "Oh, great. So one kid goes missing, the other one runs wild? Some real fine parenting right there." Lonnie shook his head. "Look, all I'm saying is, maybe I'm not the asshole, all right?"

She knew Jonathan had told her to keep out of this, but Reagan couldn't help it. Lonnie was insulting Joyce on his parenting meanwhile he hadn't even bothered to stick around. "You're the asshole." Reagan spoke out. This time, Jonathan didn't stop her. "You're the asshole! Joyce has sacrifices everyday for her children and does her best to be a great mother to Jonathan and Will, meanwhile all you're ever reliable for is for never showing up when you promised to! You have a commitment to your sons and I have only ever seen you never fulfilling that commitment. You have never been there for Jonathan or Will and I'm not going to stand around you trying to manipulate your son into thinking that you have done nothing wrong. You are a grown man. You should own up when you fail at your responsibilities but all I can hear you doing is trying to convince Jonathan that the only one failing is Joyce. She's the one actually parenting them. You couldn't even be bothered to show up. In fact, I have a question for you: how does it feel to know that a teenaged girl does more raising of your youngest than you do? Huh? How does that feel? I'm practically dying to know–"

Jonathan cut her off by placing his hand on her shoulder. "That's enough." He said, his words enough to calm her down a little. Jonathan looked down at the flyer in his hands and he shoved it against his father's chest. "In case you forgot what he looks like." Jonathan shook his head before looking back at Reagan. She then followed Jonathan as they made their way to leave the house.

* * *

They waited patiently in silence for their food to arrive. Reagan had insisted they go out to eat lunch before returning to Hawkins, though insisted wasn't really the word for it. Her stomach grumbled and she whined until Jonathan pulled up in front of a diner. When Jonathan had spent more than five minutes looking at the menu, she had nearly yelled at him until he ordered a sandwich.

Neither of them said anything, especially not a word about what just happened. But there seemed to be a mutual understanding that nothing of importance needed to be said. Not right away at least.

Reagan's face lit up when the waitress brought for her hamburger. She didn't waste a second before diving straight in. Jonathan could tell how hungry she was by the way her tiny hands latched onto the burger. It looked kind of funny to him, watching her eat. She seemed so small and delicate at first glance but she ate with the ferocity of an animal. Jonathan was sure if he tried to interrupt her or try to take away her food, one of her perfectly manicured fingernails would make him bleed.

She treated the fries more kindly and took her time. Jonathan worked on his food slowly most of the time and seeing her drop down to his pace was nice for him. Reagan ate slowly, working on an individual fry rather than shoving it into her mouth like she had done with her burger. She paused for small sips of her cola in between.

Her eating fascinated him so much that Jonathan suddenly felt the urge to capture the moment. He reached into his bag and pulled out his camera. Reagan was oblivious to this, as she stared around the diner as she put a single fry between her teeth. Only when the sound of the camera going off did she notice he was taking a picture of her.

"Why did you just take my picture?" Reagan questioned. Jonathan shrugged, a little embarrassed that he hadn't stopped himself from taking her picture. "I... had to." It was the least complicated way to sum up the urge, and it was what Jonathan went with. Reagan nodded her head and a grin grew on her face as an idea popped into her head.

Jonathan gave her a puzzled look as she lunged for the ketchup bottle. Reagan pulled it up and twisted up the bottle cap before dumping a red glop onto her plate. She then looked around her fries for two that matched in length and dipped the tips in the ketchup. Reagan secured the fries in her mouth and Jonathan began to realize what she was doing.

"Take the picture." Her voice was a little muffed by the fries in her mouth and Jonathan couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous she looked. "Jon!" Reagan protested and he quickly grabbed his camera and snapped the shot before she could yell at him again. Jonathan couldn't stop chuckling as Reagan carefully removed the fries and ate them in one bite. She gulped them down and snatched his camera away from him.

"What are you doing–" "Smile for the camera!" Reagan told him, smirking as she turned it around to face him. She was lucky enough to take the picture just as he was laughing at her. Jonathan finally got his camera back for, shaking his head as he looked down at it. "You're so wild, you could've broken it." Jonathan pointed out.

She shrugged her shoulders at the accusation. "But I didn't." Reagan defended herself, sticking out her chin proudly. Jonathan nodded his head, knowing he couldn't deny that. "Yeah... you didn't." Jonathan mumbled as he looked at his camera. He then looked up at her softly. "About what you said back there–" "Oh, I'm sorry about that. I know you told me to stay out of it."

"I'm glad you didn't."

His words shocked her, but brought a small smile to her face. "I have never seen anybody talk to him that way. I mean, my mom yells but he hardly ever looked the way he did when you said those things. So... thanks." Jonathan said, smiling back at her. Reagan nodded her head,"You're welcome." She told him.

"I guess you're now thinking it was pretty dumb of you to mute me before, right?" Reagan asked. Jonathan shrugged his shoulders,"I guess." He admitted. "And that you're probably thinking I should always do the talking no matter what, right?" She propped both of her elbows onto the table, leaning her chin down on her hands. "I wouldn't go that far–" Jonathan began, but Reagan just took a deep breath to spit out another sentence.

Before she cold say another thing, Jonathan was quick to say something. "I think I liked you better as a mute." He commented. Reagan gasped dramatically, jokingly blowing his words out of proportions. "I thought you said I was a terrible mute." She pointed out. He nodded his head before chuckling,"The worst."


	4. I Ran

"Thanks for giving me a ride home." Reagan said quietly as Jonathan pulled up in front of her house. Jonathan pursed his lips together, almost afraid to say anything. Yesterday when he did speak his mind, he ended up saying the wrong thing. But the boy knew that she needed him to answer her, so Jonathan gave a polite but curt nod of his head. Reagan was a little disappointed when he didn't say anything, but instead of getting too offended by it she just smiled over at him. "You're a little weird, Jonathan Byers. Do you know that?" She asked him teasingly.

Jonathan rolled his eyes as a small smirk appeared on his face. "And you're not? Because I have photographic evidence that proves otherwise." He pointed out. He only realized too late that he just called her weird, and the smirk dropped immediately from his face as he reached to cover his mouth to prevent him from saying anything else stupid. Reagan laughed, mostly because he had just become incredibly nervous and it showed. "I'm not mad, Jonathan. I do happen to think I'm a little weird. It often makes me uncomfortable to feel that way... but not around you." Her voice was sincere when she spoke to him. She only realized too late that she had spoken too honestly, and got embarrassed by it.

She opened the car door, leaving Jonathan to look at her in a soft awe. Reagan stepped out and smiled small back to him. "I'll see you in school tomorrow. Yeah?" She asked him. Jonathan nodded his head quickly, thinking about how he never really had someone say that to him before. He usually never had the type of friend at school who would look out for him in case they saw him. "Yeah. I'll see you." Jonathan offered her a smile as she closed the door. He watched her until she made it to her front door, and watched as she disappeared inside.

Once Reagan shut the front door, she immediately heard her name. "Reagan?" Steve called down, but he didn't wait for her reply. Instead the boy came running and practically flew down the stairs until he had his hands put roughly on both of her shoulders. "I can't find it. I've looked through your room, which I'm sorry about. I know you don't like me in there. But I've checked everywhere. I even went through the garbage. I even cleaned my room to see if you might have lost it in all of that mess. I checked the kitchen. I checked the backyard. I checked the basement. The laundry room. I even checked between every single couch cushion in this house. I know you said not to worry about it, but the last time you lost your inhaler–"

"Steve!"

Her twin brother paused in his panic once she yelled his name. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she was not in the mood to deal with him like this, and Steve gently removed his hands from her shoulders. "Sorry." He apologized. "Sorry– I think... I don't know why I went off like this. But you weren't in school today and I just thought the worst and the school nurse wouldn't even say if she had seen you or not and... I'm sorry. Maybe I'm traumatized or something. I mean we were only ten when you lost it before and you had to go to the hospital. And you know... hospitals freak me out." Steve swallowed a lump in his throat. It was only when he had stopped talking that Reagan noticed how truly worried he was. He almost looked like he was ready to cry.

"I'm fine, Steve. It's okay. I found it." Reagan reached into the pocket of her yellow jacket to bring out her inhaler. She showed her brother, which earned a great big sigh of relief from him. "That's good. That's really good. Where do you find it?" Steve questioned, knowing he had looked practically everywhere in his house. "Jonathan Byers had it." Reagan admitted, a little hesitantly, knowing those two never truly got along.

The relief on Steve's face soon replaced itself with disdain. "Why did _he_ have it?" Steve asked, crossing his arms over his chest. Reagan could tell by the tone of his voice that he wasn't too happy about it, and she just averted his gaze. "Reagan, why did he have it?" He repeated his question but once again she gave no immediate answer. "Reagan!" Steve shouted.

"I... He's the one I skipped school with. Yesterday and today. We were looking for Will." Reagan explained simply. Under any other circumstances, Steve might've calmed down. He might have taken a breath to think about things. But after the worried state his sister put him in, the boy's temper got the best of him. "You're sure that's the only thing you were doing with Jonathan Byers?" Steve asked, frowning down at her.

Reagan scoffed at his tone of voice, mirroring her twin and crossing her arms over her chest. "I can't believe you would say something like that." She replied. "Really? Because I definitely can believe. Come on, Reagan. You're not an idiot. I'm the idiot, you're supposed to be the smart. Do you think Jonathan Byers really likes you? He's just some freak who's never been with anyone. You're probably just the first girl who ever paid attention to him. And he's trying to take advantage of that. He probably thinks he can just get with you because you're his kid brother's babysitter. He doesn't actually like you. He just wants to get in your pants." Steve told her.

"Is it really hard to believe that someone would like me?" Reagan asked, her brother ignoring the hurt look on her face. "Reagan, you're a nice girl, but that's the problem. If you're too nice to guys like Jonathan Byers, they'll take advantage of you. And that's what he's doing, Reagan. He's using you." He insisted. Reagan shook her head,"No, Steve, he wouldn't do that–" "Yeah? Are you so sure about that?" He snapped at her, meeting her eyes. It was only then that Steve noticed that he had made her cry. Before he could say anything else, Reagan moved past him and made her way up the stairs.

"Reagan. Come on. Reagan!" Steve called after her, but the only response he got was a slammed door.

* * *

"God, Steve, could the music be any louder?" Carol asked as Steve passed her in the kitchen, the two packs of beer in his arms. The redhead was causally sitting upon his kitchen counter, her arms draped around her boyfriend's neck. "Yes, it can. Tommy?" Steve smirked as his friend moved away from his girlfriend. Carol rolled her eyes and hopped off the counter before moving over to Reagan. "Men." She sighed before giggling, nudging her friend's shoulder with her own. "You look nice tonight." Carol complimented.

"Hmm?" Reagan said, finishing her sip of Coke. She had tuned herself out earlier after Carol and Tommy had started making out on her kitchen counter. Carol rolled her eyes before moving in front of her. "I said you look nice, you dimwit." Carol repeated. Any other night, Reagan would've loved that compliment, but all she could do that night was give Carol a very unenthusiastic 'thanks'. "Come on, Reagan. You should be happy. This is a big accomplishment. I'm just sad no one but my boyfriend and your brother are here to see this." She said, linking arms with Reagan. "Wait a second. I could call Marcus from the football team. Tommy's friends with him. He'd totally come over here if Tommy or I called." Carol suggested.

Reagan shook her head,"No, Carol. It's fine. I don't want to talk to Marcus from the football team or anybody else you had in mind. I'd really just appreciate if I could spend some time with my best friend tonight." Reagan told her. Carol chuckled,"Oh, sweetie. Do you really think I'm going to spend time with you tonight? Tommy's here. And unlike some, I actually like the idea of spending my time with a boy." Carol replied as she unlinked her arm from Reagan's. She then walked away from Reagan, finding Tommy and heading outside with him to the pool.

Steve returned inside after setting up the drinks outside by the pool. He looked at the look on Reagan's face, furrowing his brows. "You okay?" He asked her. Reagan looked up at him and rolled his eyes. "Like you care." She told him, moving past him to go outside.

It wasn't long until Steve joined his friends and his sister outside, this time with two girls in tow. Nancy had a smile on her face, looking excited to be there. Barb had a look on her face that resembled the look on Reagan's face. Both the redhead and blonde looked at each other briefly, sharing a knowing look. Neither of them were in the mood for a party. Reagan sat on one of the pool chairs, watching as Tommy and Carol stood by the two talking. Eventually, like he always did, he tried picking his girlfriend up and pretending like he was going to throw her into the pool. This, like always, got Carol pissed off at him.

"You're such an asshole, Tommy!" Carol pushed him back as he giggled. She then looked over to where Reagan was sitting, seeing that the blonde clearly wasn't having a good time. Reagan looked up, noticing Carol's eyes on her. The two looked at each other before Carol rolled her eyes and linked arms with Tommy. Reagan frowned, looking down at her hands again. Steve finished off his first beer of the night, though to be fair after the conversation he had with Reagan earlier he had sneaked into his father's liquor cabinet for something a little stronger which he had stolen away into a flask.

Nancy smirked at her boyfriend as he tossed the can away. "Is that supposed to impress me?" She challenged him. "You're not?" Steve asked nonchalantly, placing a cigarette in his mouth before looking at her. "You are a cliche, you do realize that?" "You are a cliche." Steve responded, lighting his cigarette. "What with your... your grades and your band practice."

"I'm so not in band." Nancy chuckled lightly as she shook her head. "Okay, party girl. Why don't you just, uh, show us how it's done, then?" He said, offering her a small knife. "Okay." She replied confidently, standing up and grabbing a can of beer. "You gotta make a little hole right in the bottom–" "I got it." Nancy smiled back at him.

Tommy finished his beer,"Yeah, she's smart, you douche." He chuckled as he crushed his beer can on his head before throwing it away. Nancy poked the hole before putting her lips to the bottom of the can. Soon everyone at that party aside from Barb and Reagan were chanting 'chug' as Nancy drank. Tommy hollered as Nancy dropped the can in victory, with rounds of laughs coming after wards.

She looked back to see that her best friend was less than happy. "Barb, you wanna try?" Nancy asked, hoping that getting her in on the fun would change her mood. "What? No." Barb replied but Nancy was already making her way over. "No, I don't want to. Thanks." The redhead tried insisting, but her friend didn't easily give up.

"Come on," Nancy smiled as she moved towards her. "Nance, I don't want to." Barb told her, but she wasn't hearing any of that. "It's fun! Just give it a–" "Nance..." Just... Just give it a shot." Barb reluctantly took the beer can from her hands after that, standing up from the chair.

Everyone watched as Barb tried to poke a hole using the knife, but her grip slipped and the knife pierced her skin. Barb dropped the beer can, earning a chuckle from Tommy. "Gnarly." Tommy commented, looking over. "Are you okay?" Nancy said. "Yeah." Barb dismissed. "Barb, you're bleeding." She pointed out, taking a step towards her but Barb just put out her hands in front of her in order to stop Nancy.

"I'm _fine_." She insisted.

Barb looked over to Steve and Reagan. "Where's your bathroom?" She asked. "I'll show you." Reagan stood up immediately, seeing it as a chance to leave this party. She walked past her brother and looked to Barb, before leading her inside. The tall redhead followed the short blonde inside. The two didn't really say anything to each other until they reached the bathroom.

The taller girl entered first, turning on the faucet and running her hand under cold water. She winced a little and frowned before looking to Reagan who was leaning against the doorframe. "Bandaids or something?" She asked. "Oh, the cabinet. Let me." Reagan said, reaching up to the cabinet on the wall. She looked through but couldn't find any gauze. "Maybe I should grab you something else." Reagan suggested, disappearing out of the bathroom.

She soon returned with a blue washcloth and gave it to Barb. "Apply pressure and you should stop bleeding. If you don't, you might need to go to the hospital to get that looked at." She said. Barb smiled small as she wrapped the cloth tightly around her wound. "Thanks. You know... I didn't realize you were so nice. Or so... human." Barb commented.

Reagan furrowed her brows, not sure what Barb meant by that. "Oh, sorry. I mean– normal. Like... like I could talk to you. You're not like your brother or Tommy. Or even Carol. I– I'm sorry for thinking you were like Carol." Barb told her quietly, feeling bad if she offended the girl who was helping her. Not even Nancy went with her, and she was Barb's best friend. "If you don't mind me asking... why are you friends with them?"

"Because Steve is friends with them. And I do everything with Steve. He's my twin brother." Reagan explained. Barb nodded her head as she turned off the faucet. "But that doesn't mean you have to be friends with the same people." She pointed out. Reagan nodded her head,"I know... I just thought... it was safer this way."

Barb nodded her head,"I can't blame you there. You're popular. And it's high school. But– and here's my advice– I really wouldn't want to be friends with someone who makes me miserable." Barb told her gently, before she sighed and looked down at her hand. "I can take it from here. You can get back out there if you want." She said.

"Thanks, Barbara." Reagan smiled small before turning on her heel. "Reagan–" She stopped the blonde before she could leave,"Call me Barb." The redhead smiled brightly as her. Reagan chuckled before nodding her head before making her way back outside.

When she saw everyone splashing around in the pool, Reagan laughed as she walked over to the edge. Steve noticed her and swam up to her, moving his wet locks out of his face. "Wonder Twin. Join us." Steve chuckled. Reagan hesitated for a moment, thinking back to what Barb had just told her. Her friends did make her miserable, even Steve sometimes too. But the girl always forgave him for whatever idiotic thing he did. And in that moment, Reagan truly believed she could forgive him for anything. Even that fight they had.

She crouched down to her brother's level. "Or else what?" She questioned. Steve smirked, knowing Reagan well enough to know she no longer seemed mad with him. "Or else this." Steve couldn't hold back his laugh as he gripped onto his sister's wrist and pulled her in. Nancy giggled at her boyfriend's antics, but laughed harder when Reagan resurfaced. The blonde's wet hair had fallen completely in her face, but that didn't stop her from splashing her brother relentlessly.

* * *

"I'm freezing." Carol complained as she hugged the towel around her body. Reagan chuckled as she quickly shook out her wet hair. Tommy looked over at his girlfriend and smiled. "Well, I hear their mom's room has a fireplace." Tommy said as he led his girlfriend away from the group. Carol smiled over to her boyfriend as she followed him, making Reagan roll her eyes. It wouldn't be the first time she was ditched by Carol.

Steve frowned,"Are you kidding?" He asked his friends. "Okay, well, you know, you are cleaning the sheets." Steve told them before looking to Reagan. She already knew what her brother had in mind. He had invited his girlfriend over to his house when their parents weren't home. Steve took a step closer to her and raised his brow. "You going to be okay down here? You sure you want to be swimming on your own?" He questioned.

Reagan rolled her eyes,"I'll be fine. You know you don't have to be worried about me all the time just because you're five minutes older than me." She pointed out. Steve smirked before shaking his head," _Six_ minutes." He corrected before turning to Nancy. "You all right?" He asked his girlfriend, and Nancy gave him a simple 'yeah'. "Yeah? Come on, let's get you some dry clothes." He told her before looking back at his sister. "Have fun by yourself, weirdo."

She rolled her eyes once again at his comment, watching her brother and his girlfriend disappear knowing what they were going to do. Reagan decided to keep her mind off of it though. It was typically the way things went though. Her best friend had her boyfriend. And her brother always had some girl. They were always happy with someone else and she was always alone.

It didn't take long for Reagan to find her swimsuit and change. She had made up her mind that she wasn't going to go back in the water again with her clothes on. It was a cool night though and it didn't help she had chosen her two-piece to wear. The girl was already damp though, so she didn't mind it all that much. Some fog had gathered near the water. She walked close to the edge of the pool, staring down.

The song shifted, reminding Reagan that there was still music playing outside. Carol had turned it down but she could still hear it very clearly. It was something by that band, A Flock of Seagulls. But Reagan didn't recognize which one it was until the chorus came.

"I ran." She whispered to herself, moving to sit down. She slipped her feet into the water gently, letting herself adjust to the temperature. "So far away." She sighed as she looked at the water. The music played in the background as she closed her eyes. "I couldn't get away." Reagan said softly as she slipped into the water.

Not too far away, Jonathan had snapped the picture at the perfect time. He had captured Reagan, in her swimsuit, with her eyes closed, slipping into the water. Even if there was faint music playing, the world had become quiet in the time she was underwater. No noise got to her or him. Jonathan watched in a peaceful silence at the girl he had become acquainted with.

It was like for the first time, he was really seeing her.

Reagan resurfaced, surprising a tall redhead who had stepped outside. "Oh– I'm sorry." Barb said, realizing that Reagan was in the pool all by herself. The blonde quickly shook her head,"Oh, no. You didn't interrupt anything. I–" Reagan stopped when she realized that the other girl was crying. She quickly slipped out of the pool, grabbing her towel and wrapping it around herself.

"Did something happen? Can I help?" Reagan asked as she approached the girl, but Barb just stuck out her hands. "No, no– just no. Okay? Leave me alone. I'm sure you're very nice but I need to be alone right now so don't make me say something that I regret. Because I'm not angry with you." Barb said defensively. Reagan furrowed her brows,"Are you angry with Nancy?" She asked gently.

Barb paused before scoffing. "I'm angry with everyone in your house right now." She replied, reaching her uninjured hand up to wipe her cheeks. "Can I just... can you just leave me alone? I just need some time to think and then I'll leave. I promise. My car's parked not too far away from here." Barb told her.

The girl seemed upset, and Reagan wasn't sure if the best thing to do was to help her or to leave her alone. She just nodded her head, deciding that respecting Barb's wishes was the best thing. "Sure. I'll just–" Reagan went over, shutting the music off. "So you can think in peace." She explained, seeming a little awkward now that she was leaving the redhead all alone. Reagan felt bad about it, but she wouldn't know until later that it was the wrong choice.

* * *

"Nancy, do you need a ride home?"

Nancy was taken by surprise at the sound of Reagan's voice. She had honestly not expected anyone this late at night to be awake. Even Steve had fallen asleep after what they did. "Uh, no, Reagan... but thanks." Nancy replied as she moved towards the stairs. "You're not going to walk home, are you?" Reagan questioned, taking a step out of her bedroom. Nancy paused, looking back at her.

It wasn't like Reagan was wrong. Barb had been her ride and she had told her to leave. "You're all ready for bed, I couldn't ask you to–" "You're not, Nancy. I'm offering. And I bet Steve has already fallen asleep so it's not like he'll take you." She told her, slipping back into her room. Reagan kicked off her slippers and put on her glasses before joining Nancy.

"I didn't know you wear glasses." Nancy commented as she looked at the tiny blonde. Reagan smiled and nodded her head,"I avoid them when I can, but I shouldn't avoid them while driving." She pointed out as she moved down the stairs. Nancy watched as Reagan grabbed her jacket and the keys, letting her lead the way out of her house.

She realized that despite dating the girl's twin brother, Nancy really didn't know anything about Reagan other than the fact she was Steve's twin sister. Nancy could tell already that she was nice by the way she was willing to leave her house in her pajamas just to drive her brother's girlfriend all the way home.

"Your little brother is Mike, right?" Reagan asked as they exited her house. Nancy nodded her head politely. "Yeah." She answered. Reagan smiled,"Will mentions him all the time. I've heard many an epic tale from their Dungeons and Dragons games over at your house." She mentioned. "I almost forgot. Your Will's babysitter." Nancy remembered, frowning when she realized what the Byers family was going through probably wouldn't be too far off for Reagan.

Reagan nodded her head,"Yeah. I babysit other kids though too. But Will's the first kid I've babysat. I've been babysitting since I twelve and it meant so much to me that Joyce let me take care of him every now and then. But when Jonathan got a job too... it became a weekly thing." She said, reaching her brother's car. Technically it belonged to her as well, but Steve always used it more than she did so she always referred to it as his.

She unlocked the car, slipping inside the driver's seat and opening the door for Nancy. "You must be really worried about him." Nancy said as she moved into the passenger seat. Reagan nodded her head,"But we'll find him. I know it. And he's going to get home safe." She said, starting the car. Reagan seemed sure when she talked about it, but Nancy could tell by the look in her eyes that Reagan wasn't as sure as she sounded.

The car ride remained mostly quiet. Honestly, it was a nice quiet for Nancy, and when she did talk to Reagan she learned things about the girl. It was nice to strike up a friendship with her, especially since she was dating Reagan's brother. Nancy almost felt bad when the car ride ended.

"Thank you, for driving me home. You didn't have to do that." Nancy said, unbuckling her seatbelt. "You look like you needed it." Reagan shrugged her shoulders, looking over at her. Nancy nodded her head, a small smile appearing on her face. "You look like you needed it too." She said, before exiting the car. Reagan was surprised by Nancy's comment, but felt like it was a good one. And who knows. Maybe it was the start of a beautiful friendship.


	5. Found

"Come on, Reagan. Do I really have to do this? It's so lame." Carol commented as she slid the other girl's notebook back across the table. The two girls were sitting together eating lunch, taking the time to talk to each other before Steve and Tommy came into the cafeteria late from the gym class they just had.

Reagan frowned as she took her notebook back, closing it and stuffing it back into her backpack. "It– It's not lame. Not to me. It's... it's very important to me actually. It's my future, Carol." Reagan pointed out. The redhead scoffed, knowing full well that her mindset was too stuck in high school to think about a future that was only a few years away.

She sat forward in her seat, pushing her tray aside. She wasn't very hungry after what her friend had said. "You really don't think about those things? Not even about marrying Tommy?" She asked. Carol chuckled, using the fork on her tray to play with the food she had gotten for lunch. "Me? Marry Tommy? I– I mean... I hadn't put much thought into stuff like that." She said simply, pursing her lips together to hide the lie. Reagan furrowed her brows,"Not at all? You two have been together for years. What if you broke up?" She asked.

Carol rolled her eyes at the blonde,"Broke up? Tommy wouldn't break up with me." She dismissed easily until she saw the expression on Reagan's face. It was doubtful, and Carol felt oddly hurt when she looked at Reagan. "He wouldn't break up with me." She snapped at the blonde, making Reagan avert her eyes. "I... I never said he would... but– Carol, if you're not thinking about schools or marriage, what do you want out of your future? Do you even have a job right now?" She inquired.

"What– you think because that just because I'm not like you that I don't know what I want? Just because I haven't been working as some dumb babysitter since I was like twelve years old? Or because I don't have a stupid lists of pretentious schools I want to go to? Or because I don't kid myself into thinking that I can be the freaking president one day?" Carol asked, glaring at supposed best friend. Reagan backed down quickly after that, looking to the notebook she had just stuffed into her bag.

"You're right. All that's stupid. Who was I kidding?" Reagan found herself saying, feeling more than ever the urge to leave Carol at the lunch table all by herself, but Reagan could barely move an inch. She could barely breath.

All of her thoughts were broken by the arrival of Steve and Tommy. Tommy joined his girlfriend across the table, taking a seat next to her. Steve gestured for Reagan to move down, knowing that he had the intention of saving a spot for Nancy. "Hey, Wonder Twin." Steve greeted Reagan with a smile, oblivious to the girl's emotions at the moment.

He looked over to Carol immediately. "Did Reagan show you the list? Pretty cool, right? She has been working on it for nearly a month now. She's been doing all this research and making all these phone calls. You should've seen her face when she found out Columbia was admitting women this year. She was all excited to add it to her list." Steve told her. Carol forced a small smile on her face.

"Yeah. It was a pretty cool list."

Reagan forced a smile on her face after that, mirroring her best friend. She couldn't help but be reminded of what Barb had told her the night before. She really wouldn't want to be friends with someone who made her miserable... so why was Reagan?

The conversation had turned simple since Carol changed the subject. The next thing Reagan knew, her friend's foot was on the table. Her and Tommy were discussing the weird spot that had appeared since last night on Carol's ankle. "That's why science doesn't make any damn sense to me." Tommy said, looking away from his girlfriend's ankle and cluing Reagan into the conversation.

"No, I swear. Look at this. It's totally frostbite." Carol tried to convince him. Steve handed over a applesauce cup to Tommy,"Oh, thanks, man." He said before looking back at her. "It's a heated pool." Tommy pointed out. "Well, if it's not frostbite, then what is it?" Carol questioned. Reagan only looked up from her tray when Nancy joined the table, and the blonde sent a quick smile over to the brunette. "Ugh, I don't care what it is, it's disgusting! Just get it off the table. We're eating here." Steve exclaimed at Carol, hoping the redhead would finally move her foot off before he had the urge to push it off himself.

She rolled her eyes as slapped her boyfriend's had away before he could touch the weird spot, and Carol dragged her leg back under the table. Nancy adjusted herself at the table, looking to Tommy,"Hey, Tommy. When you left, did you see Barb?" She asked him. Tommy looked at Nancy in utter confusion,"What?" He asked. "Barbara. She's not here today." Nancy said for clarification, but both Tommy and Carol looked like they had no idea who she was talking about.

"I seriously have no idea who you're talking about." Tommy laughed as he looked at Nancy. "Come on, don't be an ass, man. Did you... did you see her leave last night or not?" Steve shut down his friend's antics, defending his girlfriend. Tommy frowned before looking back to Nancy,"No. She was gone when we left." He explained. Reagan peaked her head into the conversation,"I– I talked to her." She said. Nancy raised both brows,"You did?"

Reagan nodded her head gently,"Yeah. I went back outside to the pool after everyone..." Reagan trailed off mostly because she didn't want to use the word 'sex' in a place like her high school. "Anyways, she said she wasn't parked too far away from my house. She just said she needed some time to think before she left. She was very... upset." Reagan informed Nancy, hoping it could be helpful for her. Before Nancy could reply, Carol chimed in with a joke. "Probably couldn't stand listening to all that moaning." She said, making Tommy chuckle before she decided to break out into mocking moans.

"Oh, Steve!" Carol shouted loudly. Tommy joined in on the mocking, making the other three at the table very uncomfortable. Steve looked mildly embarrassed by it, while Nancy ducked her head in shame for some reason. Reagan just looked away completely, uttering disgusted with how the two were acting like child about something she never ever wanted to hear about.

Once the antics were over, Steve looked over at his girlfriend. "Listen, I'm sure she's fine. She's probably just... she's probably just skipping, or something." He tried to comfort Nancy. "Yeah." She nodded, trying to believe it was real. But Nancy knew Barb was the type of person who just skipped class. "Yeah, probably." Nancy repeated, more to herself than to anyone else at the table. "I'm sure she's fine, Nancy. But if you're really worried then you should probably check in with her parents. Maybe she wasn't feeling well today and stayed home." Reagan attempted, knowing that her brother unknowingly dismissed the issue too quickly.

Nancy seemed more assured by Reagan, and decided to take an interest in the lunch she had gotten today. Reagan smiled before turning back to her lunch, looking briefly to the other side of the cafeteria. A certain person caught her eye and Reagan stopped to see Jonathan Byers outside in the hallway. He had stopped by the doorway, looking in and noticing the table where Reagan usually sat at.

The two shared brief eye contact, where Reagan gave him a grin. Jonathan smiled small before deciding to move forward, knowing that he had other things to do. Though it was still nice to see Reagan, even if it was only for a brief moment.

* * *

Jonathan sat in the darkroom, developing photographs he had taken from the night before. He almost disliked the fact that while he originally when out looking for his brother, he got more photos of Steve's party than he did of the woods. There was certainly a numerous amount of photos of Reagan around too, in her clothes and then just in her swimsuit. He felt a little awkward about taking those, but the look on her face was the reason why... although he couldn't deny that the blonde looked rather attractive in a swimsuit. He watched as a photo developed and brought it up to he could hang it to dry.

"Hey." Nicole came in into the room, greeting the boy. Her eyes immediately caught on the photos as soon as she set her bag down. "Oh, hey." Jonathan said nervously, knowing what it might have looked like to normal people. He quickly moved to take all the pictures down before she could say anything. Nicole gave him a weird look as he took the photographs with, fumbling to stuff them into his bag. Jonathan exited the darkroom and the photography classroom, moving outside into the hall.

At the exact moment when he thought he was in the clear, Jonathan found himself in a clash collision course with a tiny blonde. He went down at the same time Reagan did, and both teenagers fell back on the floor, scattering their stuff out in the crowded hallway. The bell rang shortly after, signaling all the students to make their way to their next classes. Some of the photographs from Jonathan's bag had spilled and he scrambled to hide them all before Reagan saw any of them.

One of them however caught her eye and Reagan moved to pick it up. She rubbed her head a little, looking over to Jonathan as she grabbed the picture off of the floor. Reagan chuckled a little,"I think we bumped heads." She said, brushing her bangs from her forehead as she looked down at the picture in her hands. "Wait–" Jonathan reached to grab it, but then noticed the smile on her face. Reagan turned the picture over, showing him that it was the one that she took of him in the diner.

If he had to be honest, Jonathan was almost certain he hadn't seen another picture of himself where he looked so... happy. It was an odd feeling to see it, but he almost felt good about it. Like it was believable to think that laughing boy in the picture was him.

"God. Have you seen anything more beautiful? I'm amazing. I'm an artist. This is the best picture in the history of all pictures." Reagan gloated with a goofy grin, sitting back on her knees as she turned the picture back towards herself. Jonathan couldn't help but laugh and reach once more for the photograph. "Can I have that back?" He asked. Reagan moved it out of the way before he could snatch the picture away from her. "No way, Jonathan Byers. I took this picture myself therefore it's mine to keep. Besides, it's a beautiful picture." She pointed out.

He smirked lightly,"I can see your thumb." Jonathan pointed out to her as he gestured to the photograph. "Right in the corner. Here." He tapped on the photograph lightly, looking back at Reagan. "Not to mention it's completely out of focus and I look all blurry. If you think that this picture is so amazing, maybe you got bumped in the head too hard." Jonathan said softly as he reached over to Reagan, brushing the bangs out of her forehead. He inspected for any signs of bruising before gently brushing her bangs back into place. "I think you'll live." He said, meeting her eyes.

Reagan smiled up at him before looking back at the picture. "Can I keep it? Pretty please?" She begged him, pouting out her bottom lip. Jonathan reluctantly nodded his head, but cracked a smile. "I guess it's only fair. I get to keep that beautiful picture of you with fries in your mouth looking like a vampire so..." He joked lightly as he moved to stand up. He offered his hand to Reagan, helping the girl up.

She grinned at him before asking,"What classes do you have this afternoon?"

"Boring ones mostly. Why?" Jonathan asked as he adjusted his bag over his shoulder. Reagan picked up her backpack off the ground and held out her hand to him,"Because how would you for once this week like to skip class with me for fun?" She asked him. "Fun?" He raised a brow, making her nod her head eagerly. "I don't know if I'm much... fun." Jonathan shrugged his shoulders. "Nonsense. I'm about to take you to the funnest place in the world and you won't even have to drive this time." She promised him.

Jonathan was a little bit nervous about it, but decided to take her hand. "Fine." He agreed dismissively, but Reagan jumped up and down in excitement. "Come on!" She yelled happily, dragging him down the now empty hallway.

* * *

"Your idea of fun is the school library?"

He honestly couldn't tell if that was out of character or not, mostly because Jonathan knew very well that there was two sides to Reagan. There was this persona she put on for people, that popular perfect girl. And there was this dorkier side to her that wasn't afraid to be real. Jonathan probably pegged that the school library swung to the latter, but he was never sure when it came to her.

"Shut up, I promised you fun, didn't I?" She said, still holding onto his hand as she decided to drag him down the long aisle of books that their school had. Jonathan had not spent a long time in the library, knowing it was a place only for studying for tests. Even when he had a test, he felt much more comfortable studying at home.

"How do you know that the library is fun?" Jonathan couldn't help but ask her as his eyes wandered the books. He had no idea their library had so many books, although when he caught a few glimpses of some of the titles he was pretty sure there weren't many _good_ books. Reagan slowed her pace, letting go of his hand to look back at him.

"Well it all started as a young child. What do you do when a young wheezing little girl cannot take gym class? What do you do with her? Well, if you're a person with any normal amount of sense, you stick her in the school library. You're looking a librarian assistant veteran." She explained. Jonathan smiled small,"Really? Did you receive any medals for your service?" He joked a little, making Reagan roll her eyes playfully.

She stopped when the reached the back of the library,"No medals, but serious perks came with the job. Especially this one. Allow me to introduce you to the super secret librarian lounge." Reagan introduced as she took out a key from her backpack. She unlocked a door that opened up to a room. Reagan flicked on the lights and closed the door behind Jonathan. He looked around the room, noticing chairs and tables set up near a small kitchen, and a few comfy couches that surrounded a television set. There was a couple of bookcases along the walls too, with books he knew he had never seen the library.

"We have a fully stocked fridge and pantry. We have coffee and tea. We have a television and– my favorite part–" Reagan approached one of the bookcases. "The restricted section." She whispered as she looked back over her shoulder at Jonathan. He furrowed his brows at her,"We have a restricted section?" He questioned as he approached the bookcase.

Reagan nodded her head,"Dolores, the librarian, knows she can't have these books on display so she hides them back here. There are three librarian assistants, including me, that have access to the place." She explained, looking through the books before pulling one out. "To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Banned for profanity and undermining of race relations." She said, before pulling out another book. "Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Banned for profanity and vulgar language." Reagan looked through them before looking back at him. "This whole bookcase is full of them. The rest of books in the other shelves here don't relate directly to school, that or some of them are far out there. Some are about witchcraft."

"What kind of a librarian is Dolores?" He questioned as he pulled out a book. Reagan grinned,"She was a spy in World War II."

* * *

The final bell rang, signaling the end of classes for that day. Reagan took the time to look up from her book, seeing that Jonathan was still invested in his. The girl slipped off her reading glasses and smiled over of him, softly nudging him with her foot. The two were laying down on the biggest couch in the lounge, which both of them laying down comfortable. Jonathan leaned against one arm of the couch, while Reagan leaned against the other. Their shoes and bags were scattered on the floor, as they had gotten comfortable for the last few hours.

Jonathan finally looked up from his book, although reluctantly being that he was nearly finished. "What?" He asked, looking over at Reagan. She chuckled,"School's over." Reagan pointed out. Jonathan felt embarrassed, realizing that he had completely missed hearing that bell. He closed the book, sitting up properly as he looked across at her. "Do you think we're weird for just sitting here reading for the last few hours? Shouldn't we have done something else?" He asked carefully. Reagan shrugged her shoulders,"I don't know. I mean... I do think we're weird, but I don't think that's a bad thing. Not around each other... right?" She was nervous when she asked him, but Jonathan just nodded at her. "Right." He confirmed, reaching over and taking her hand gently.

"Thank you for all this. For the first time since Will went missing... I relaxed. I wasn't worried for once." He admitted. Reagan frowned,"I guess all of this is wearing off then now?" She questioned. Jonathan nodded his head, meeting her eyes. "But that doesn't mean I regret it. Thank you." He told her gently. Reagan nodded her head at him,"You're welcome." She said. The two sat in silence for a moment until Jonathan removed his hand from hers.

Both of them were painfully dragged back to reality. Reagan got up from the couch, smoothing down her jean skirt before putting back on her shoes. She watched Jonathan out of the corner of her eye, watching him as he put his shoes back on. They didn't speak much to each other as they exited the lounge, but this silence wasn't as comfortable as it was when they were just reading independently next to each other.

She turned off the lights, locking the door as they left. They made their way out of the library, still not talking until they reached the hallway. People were at their lockers, getting their stuff for the end of the day. Everyone was clearing out. "I'll walk you to your car." Reagan offered as they made their way to the doors. "Sure, that'd be great." Jonathan said, a little nervous as they exited the school. Both of them were walking with their heads facing forward, but both of them were aware of how close they were walking together.

He hadn't thought much of it before when Reagan had offered her hand to him, and he had taken it, but since then Jonathan realized he suddenly had the _want_ to hold her hand. He looked down, seeing how occasionally the back of his hand brushed against the back of her hand. Jonathan looked away when he felt his face grow a little hot. He couldn't believe that the girl was making him blush. Jonathan always had this tiny microscopic crush on Reagan but now it seemed to be growing. His heart nearly stopped completely when he felt the soft touch of her fingers.

Reagan had discreetly took his hand, acting casual about it as Jonathan looked back at her. She looked so calm about it, Jonathan probably could never tell that she was feeling just as nervous as he was right now. Reagan suddenly stopped in her tracks, turning to him. "Jonathan, I was wondering if–" Reagan cut herself off when she noticed that his attention had been grabbed by something else. Jonathan let go of her hand, and quickly made his way around his car to notice the group that was waiting for him.

No one other than Steve was sitting on the hood of his car, standing next to Nicole, Carol and Tommy. He slid off the hood as soon as he saw Jonathan in view. "Hey, man." Steve greeted harmlessly. Jonathan looked between the teenagers,"What's going on?" He question. "Nicole here was, uh, telling us about your work." Steve said, looking back to Nicole before looking once more to Jonathan. "We've heard great things." Carol said sarcastically. "Yeah, sounds cool." Tommy chimed in.

"And we'd just love to take a look. You know, as... connoisseurs of art." Steve said, looking down at Jonathan. Jonathan was growing nervous in a bad way,"I don't know what you're talking about." The boy dismissed, trying to push through the group to his car. "Oh, no?" Steve asked just as Tommy slipped Jonathan's bag away from him. "Please give me my bag." Jonathan tried to reason as Tommy tossed the bag over to Steve.

"Man, he is like totally trembling. He must really have something to hide." Steve commented as he put Jonathan's bag down on the hood of his car, pulling out the pictures from the bag. "Ah. Here we go." He said, leaning back against the car as he looked through the pictures. "Oh man." Steve was surprised, urging Tommy to pester him. "Let me see." Tommy said, reaching for the pictures.

"Dude!" Tommy exclaimed upon sight. Carol approached to take a peek,"Yeah, this isn't creepy at all." Carol offered another one of her sarcastic comments as she shifted through some. "I was looking for my brother." Jonathan tried to justify himself. "No. No, this is called stalking." Steve accused him, before he looked down and noticed a few certain pictures.

The sight of his twin sister in a swimsuit was the subject of many photographs, but the ones that caught Steve's eyes were different. He grabbed the two from the pile, the ones Jonathan had taken of Reagan in the dinner. Steve looked up to notice that Reagan had joined the group with a confused look on her face. She had been delayed since Nancy had caught up with her, and stood next to the brunette's side.

"What's going on?" Nancy asked. Reagan caught onto the look her brother was given her. "Steve?" Reagan questioned. Steve could barely meet her eyes as he rolled the two photographs up. Tommy chuckled as he looked over at Reagan,"Here's the starring lady." He commented. Reagan furrowed her brows at him,"What?" She asked.

"This creep was spying on us last night. He was probably gonna save this one for later." Carol said, handing over the photo of Reagan slipping into the water. Reagan took it, looking down at the picture with mixed emotions. She had felt so alone in that moment that she had no idea that Jonathan was taking pictures not too far away.

Steve clicked his tongue,"See, you can tell that he knows it was wrong, but..." Steve said as he walked over to Jonathan. Reagan looked at the boy, but Jonathan could barely manage eye contact with her. "Man, that's the thing about perverts... it's hardwired into them." Steve condescendingly played with Jonathan's shirt. "You know, they just can't help themselves." Steve unrolled the pictures of Reagan in his hands. Both Reagan and Jonathan noticed they were the ones from the diner.

"No!" Reagan exclaimed without thinking, knowing that those pictures didn't represent anything bad for her. Steve paused, looking over to his sister, but when he looked back at Jonathan he finally ripped them to pieces. "So–" Steve continued, throwing the pieces to the ground. Reagan dived down onto her knees to pick them up. "We'll just have to take away his toy." Steve decided, moving back towards Jonathan's bag. "No, please, not the camera." Jonathan begged, knowing that losing those photos of Reagan in the diner were far enough already for him.

It was too late to stop him. As Steve lifted the camera out of Jonathan's bag. "No, no, wait, wait... Tommy. Tommy." Steve stopped before his friend could get rough with the boy. "It's okay." Steve assured everyone, stretching his arm out to Jonathan. "Here you go, man." He said harmlessly, camera in hand. Just as Jonathan reached for his camera, Steve let go.

Reagan only stopped picking up pieces when she noticed the broken camera right in front of her. She paused, nearly dropping the torn pieces in shock. Tommy's cruel laugh was only more salt in the wound. "Come on, let's go. The game's about to start." Steve said quickly, eager to leave the situation. "Boo." Tommy said in Jonathan's face, following his friend's exit.

Carol ripped up the remaining photographs, looking down at Reagan. "Bye." The redhead said a little too cherry as she skipped off to join her boyfriend. Nancy frowned at the two as they were kneeling down, trying to put all the broken pieces together. Her eyes however caught something in one of the photographs.

Barb.

It was Barb sitting on the diving board for the pool. "Hey, Nance!" Steve called, gaining her attention. She reached down, picking up the pieces until she had the full photograph. "Come on." Steve said, and she got up, looking down at Reagan. Nancy wanted to ask her if she was still going to the game, but she probably already knew the answer was no. She didn't think Reagan would be in the mood to talk to her brother after what he did. Nancy decided to walk away, feeling like it was the wrong thing, but her mind was on other problems in the moment.

Steve looked to his sister but realized that she wasn't going to join him, so he just wrapped his arm across Nancy's shoulders, trying to push the whole ordeal out of his mind.

"Jonathan, I'm–" "Just leave, Reagan." Jonathan cut her off before she could say anything else. "What?" Reagan asked gently as she moved to take his hand. He was caught up however in the broken parts of his camera at the moment. Jonathan whipped his hand away from her touch. "I said leave, okay? That means leave. I didn't stutter and I didn't whisper so please don't make me yell at you and just leave me alone." He snapped at her.

Reagan looked down at the pieces she had managed to salvage of the torn diner pictures, but she just ended just dropping them back onto the ground. "Fine... I'll leave. If that's what you want." "That's what I want." Jonathan retorted quickly, which stung for her. He didn't notice however until Reagan stood up and left, but by the time he had notice she was too far away for Jonathan to go after her.

* * *

"Nancy?" Reagan was surprised to see Nancy outside of her house. She thought that the brunette had gone to the game with her brother. "Reagan– I– I probably should've known you were already home but... I called her parents and... and her car is still there. Can I– just check out your pool? Maybe the woods? Maybe... maybe there's a clue... I don't know." Nancy wasn't quite sure what she was looking for, but knew there were probably something of use around the area of Barb's last known location.

She nodded her head, closing her front door and gesturing to the door to the backyard. "We usually keep that door unlocked over the summer but knowing Steve he probably hasn't locked it. We can probably get in this way." She said, walking over to the wooden fence and pushing the door open. Nancy followed close behind, frowning as she looked at Reagan.

A part of her wanted to ask about Jonathan, but by the look on Reagan's face she could tell that nothing good probably came from what happened after Nancy left. "Barb?" Nancy decided to call as they made their way out to the pool area. Reagan looked around, seeing nothing out of the ordinary.

There was rustling in the bushes that caught both of their attentions. The two girls shared a look, silently asking each other if they should check it out. Reagan nodded her head slowly, under the illusion that nothing ever bad could happen on her property. Nancy and Reagan moved their way through the bushes to the forest, looking around.

"Barb?" Reagan tried calling with no response. There was more rustling, causing Nancy to call out,"Barb?!" She said, looking around. Something growled loudly behind them, causing the two to whip their heads around. Nancy fell down in shock, and Reagan's heart had jumped so much that her breath grew short suddenly. She helped Nancy up on her feet and the two of them took off quickly, knowing they wouldn't want to stay behind with whatever was in those woods.

Racing to her house caused Reagan's chest to heave up and down. She closed her front door behind her and locked it, as Nancy threw down her bag on Reagan's floor. Nancy looked around, noticing the girl was completely out of breath. "Where's your inhaler?" Nancy questioned. Reagan wheezed and coughed before pointing to the kitchen. "Backpack." She choked out, trying anything she could do to breath. Nancy rushed into the kitchen until she noticed Reagan's backpack resting in a chair.

She opened it, fumbling with all of the content until she finally felt the small object in her hand. Nancy pulled it out of the backpack and hurried back to Reagan. She handed the blonde her inhaler, and watched as Reagan shook the object before pressing it to her lips. She inhaled a few puffs before her breathing finally calmed down.

"Thank you." Reagan said quietly. Nancy nodded her head, gently reaching her hand over and resting it on her shoulder. "Should I stay until Steve comes home?" Nancy asked. Reagan took another puff from her inhaler, nodding her head at Nancy.

* * *

Steve unlocked the front door,"Reagan? I left the game early– I'm sorry about how we left things." He called, closing the door and kicking his shoes off. Their parents weren't due home until very late that night so he just expected to find his sister around. He noticed a familiar scent coming from the kitchen, and Steve entered to find his sister and girlfriend sitting at the table together.

Both of them were drinking tea, sharing a plate of shortbread cookies. Steve froze, looking to Reagan,"Tea and cookies? Did you have an asthma attack?" He questioned, knowing that those two together were a combination their mother used to calm Reagan down after the shock of having an asthma attack. Steve then looked at Nancy. "I thought you said you had something to do with your mother." He said.

Nancy frowned as she was caught in her lie. "I do. I do. But also Reagan. I also made plans with her. In fact– that thing with my mom is soon so I should get going." Nancy said nervous as she stood up, setting down her cup of tea. She looked to Reagan,"You going to be okay?" She asked her. Reagan nodded her head gently as she took a sip of her tea. Nancy smiled softly before looking at Steve.

"I'll call you later tonight." She promised, reaching up and giving him a short peck on the cheek. Nancy moved to grab her bag off the floor before exiting their house. Steve waited until Nancy was gone to address his sister. "What the hell happened, Reagan?" He questioned.

Reagan looked down at her cup of tea, setting it gently on the table. "I'm fine. Okay? We don't need to go to the hospital... but other than that, Steve, I'm not fine. Not at all. How could you do that to Jonathan? Break his camera?" She asked him.

Steve scoffed as he looked away from her. He put his hands on his hips,"How could _I_? That pervert took half-naked pictures of you, Reagan! Without you even knowing! And you sit there and act like I did something wrong?! I did you a favor by breaking that freak's camera and you are not even thanking me! You should be so grateful that I was looking out for your best interests." Steve justified.

"My best interests, Steve? Did you see the diners pictures?" She asked him, crossing her arms over her chest. Steve looked down, averting her gaze,"Y– yes." He answered defeatedly. "And how did I look in those pictures? Miserable, I presume?" Reagan raised a brow.

"Come on, we both know you looked happy but that doesn't mean that what he did–" "I want you to stop right there, Steve. Because you just said it. Happy. I was happy. And I haven't felt that way in a long time because everyone around me just makes me miserable. For the longest time you didn't, but you do now. I feel like I don't even know you anymore. You've just become... the biggest jerk." She realized, standing up from the chair.

"Reagan, I was–"

"I don't care what you were doing, Steve. I just– I just need some space right now. Okay? Just... leave me alone. Just... please leave. Leave." She begged him. Steve looked back over at her with a shocked expression on his face. "No, I'm not leaving my own house. You can't make me leave." He told her. Reagan frowned at him and nodded his head,"Fine... then I'll leave."

Before he could say anything else, Reagan stormed out, slamming the door shut behind her.

* * *

When Reagan came back a few hours later, Steve almost wished she hadn't. "I got to go." He told Nancy, who was on the other line. Steve pursed his lips together as she said her goodbye and he hung up the phone. Steve exited his room, moving down the stairs as Reagan entered through the door. His sister rolled his eyes at the sight of him, but there were more important things to worry about. "Reagan–" Steve began but stopped at the sight of her glare.

"I just went for a walk, Steve. I'm fine. And I'm still cooling off but it was dark outside so can you just leave me alone?" She said, gesturing for him to stay on the stairs. Steve frowned and shook his head,"I'm sorry, Reagan, I can't leave you alone right now." He said carefully as he made his way down the stairs. "Why not?" Reagan practically whined as her brother approached her.

Steve held out his hands carefully as he took a hold of both her shoulders,"Reagan, I just got a call from Nancy–" "Steve, let go of me please." "No, Reagan, you need to hear this from me, okay? I just got a call–" "Steve, will you please leave me alone?" "No–" "Steve!" "No!" "Steve, can you just quit it and leave me the hell alone!" She screamed at him, pushing him back roughly.

Reagan had to take a deep breath after yelling at him, knowing it was probably too much for her to scream and push him back so harshly. Steve had stumbled back, nearly tripping onto the stairs. He took a moment to let her calm down, knowing that she probably wouldn't yell at him again for some time. "Reagan, please... just hear me out... I– I got a call from Nancy, okay? And she said that her little brother Mike got home and... and he said that... that the police found Will–"

"They found Will?" Her heart flushed with sudden relief. A smile made onto her face as she couldn't believe the news she was hearing. After all that looking and worrying, Reagan was so glad that they finally found–

Her thoughts halted when she saw the look on her brother's face. "Steve..." She began quietly and he just looked down at his feet. "They... they found Will's body, Reagan. He's– he's dead." He said, bracing himself for a reaction. Steve looked up to see his sister completely fall apart.

It started with the tears until Reagan's knees started buckling. Steve rushed to catch her before she could fall to the ground and she gripped onto his clothes, trying to keep steady. "No– no... no... he can't be dead. Steve– we were going to find him. He was going to be found. He was going to be safe– I... I don't... I don't know what to do... I... I can't... I can't breathe– I can't breathe–" She choked on her sobs. This kind of breathless was different from the ones she was used to. It was worse than her asthma attacks. She didn't feel like she was going to die, and just struggling to stay alive.

This kind of breathless was like she had just died... and was just struggling to feel alive again. It was similar but different, and Reagan knew that it couldn't be fixed by an inhaler.

The door was opened shortly after, revealing the parents of the two. Steve smoothed down his sister's blonde hair, looking up at his parents as they walked in through the door with their bags. Mrs. Harrington rushed over and dropped down to her knees. "Sweetie– sweetie– Mommy's here. Mommy's here now." She said, bring Reagan into her lap as the blonde cried softly into her mother's skirt. Steve looked up, sharing a look with his father.

"They found Will." Steve explained simply.


	6. Still Alive

"You know... you don't have to go to school today."

Steve watched as Reagan as she fixed her makeup, her eyes fixed on her reflection in the mirror. Her morning routine didn't usually change from day to day. He could always expect to find her in the bathroom they shared bright and early, always getting there before he did. To be fair, Steve slept in quite often, arriving to the bathroom later than she did. But even on the days where he would wake up on time or even earlier, Reagan always beat him to the bathroom.

While she usually started her morning routine working on her hair, Steve noticed that when she was applying her makeup that she neglected to fabricate those curls this morning. He, however, couldn't tell if that was on purpose or not, as Reagan was applying a soft pink lipstick with a shaky hand.

"Reagan, please– don't do this to yourself. Talk to me. Are you even listening to me right now? Do you even hear me?" Steve grew angry with her as he continued to talk, as she was barely even looking at him at all. He yanked the lipstick out of her hand, throwing it on the floor. "Reagan!" Steve yelled, trying to get a reaction out of her. Reagan barely looked at him as she dropped to her knees to pick up her lipstick. She took the lipstick into her hands, noticing that her brother had broken it when he dropped it onto the ground.

A choked sob left her as she looked at the broken lipstick,"You broke it, Steve. You ruined it. I can never get it back now. Look what you did! Look what you did, you ruined it! You–" Reagan cried as she slumped herself against the bathroom wall. Steve ran his hands through his hair when he realized what he had done. He had messed with her makeup before, but that usually ended up with Reagan being angry with him until he bought a replacement. Her reaction in that moment was directly because of what happened to Will.

"I– shit... fuck... I'm sorry. Reagan, I didn't mean to." Steve dropped down in front of her, taking his sister into his arms. She started sobbing and wailing, struggling against him as he held onto her. "No– no... let go of me! Let go of me!" Reagan cried out, fighting against him weakly before she broke down again in tears. The girl finally stopped fighting him and let him console her for a moment. Steve gently rocked her, like he was familiar with doing after Reagan had an asthma attack. Those attacks used to scare her a lot when she was little and since Steve was always with her, he knew how to come her down after getting Reagan's inhaler to her.

"Come on, Wonder Twin... we both know I'm not good if you're not good." Steve whispered into her ear. Reagan weakly shook her head. "This can't possibly hurt you as much as it hurts me..." Reagan choked out, looking at the broken lipstick in her hand. "Trust me, Reagan, it does." Steve said, looking at her as she wiped her eyes. He never really knew Will, and he couldn't possibly say that he truly cared for the kid beyond feeling sorry that he was found dead, but Steve knew Reagan. He knew her as well as he knew himself, and anything that hurt her... it hurt him too.

Especially when it was himself who had hurt her.

* * *

"Mom?" Steve asked as he came down the stairs. His mother appeared from the kitchen with a frown on her face,"How is she?" Mrs. Harrington questioned, a little worried about the answer. "I... I tried to talk her out of going to school but– she... she's still going. I–" Steve stopped as he looked into the kitchen. The boy stopped when he saw his father in his usual spot on the table, drinking the coffee that his mother made for him, reading the newspaper liked nothing happened last night. Mrs. Harrington recognized the look in her son's eyes,"Steve, honey– please don't–"

"What the fuck do you think you're doing right now?!" Steve yelled as he stormed into the kitchen, ripping the newspaper out of his father's hand. Mr. Harrington looked up from his cup of coffee, raising his brows at his son. "Eating breakfast?" The man deadpanned. Steve looked at his father, realizing that the man was already dressed for work, briefcase leaning against his chair. "Are you honestly going into work today?" Steve questioned. "We're not going over this again, Steven. You know that my work is important–" "What about Reagan, huh? Isn't your daughter important? What about your wife? You think Mom is going into work today?!" Steve exclaimed, feeling his anger boil over as he looked down at his father.

Steve kept running his hands through his hair, having half the mind to lash out violently. He started pacing the kitchen floor, trying to do anything not to lose it. "Reagan's a big girl, Steve. Besides, she babysits a number of children. Just because one died does not mean her whole world has ended. She's a teenager girl. She'll go to the salon, read a couple of magazines and move on." Mr. Harrington stated as he finished his coffee, standing up from his chair and buttoning his suit jacket together.

His son stopped pacing, looking back at him. "You think just because Reagan cares about what she looks like that's all she is? She has been getting better grades than me since kindergarten! And she cares so much about every kid she babysits, especially Will! How can you act like this is nothing after what happened last night? Can't you take your mind off of your stupid job for once and pay attention to the people in this house?!" Steve yelled at him. His father paused, looking to his wife who had just entered the kitchen.

"Do not use that language with your father, Steven." Mrs. Harrington simply, moving to finish making breakfast for her children. Steve looked up at his father, but the man averted his eyes, taking his briefcase.

"I'm going to work. I'll see all of you tonight." Mr. Harrington called back, slamming the door shut behind him.

Neither Steve or his mother said a word to each other as the sound of his father's car left the driveway. Mrs. Harrington put down a plate of food for her son,"Your father works very hard for this family, Steve. You can't blame him when you know he's not what's hurting your sister right now." She scolded him. Steve looked at his breakfast with cold eyes,"Mom..." He trailed off, looking back over his shoulder to his mother. "Do you think– do you think I'm just like him? Like Dad?" Steve asked quietly.

Mrs. Harrington took a seat at the table, shrugging her shoulders,"Depends on what you did. What did you do, Steven?" She asked her son, raising a brow, knowing he was up to trouble. Steve averted her stern gaze, looking to his food instead. He knew she would freak out the minute he mentioned the party, meaning that topic was definitely off the table for him to talk about. "I... I hurt Reagan. I hurt her feelings and I... I don't know how to fix it." He admitted the closest thing to the truth he could. He looked up at his mother, bracing himself for what reaction she would give him. Steve knew in the past his mother got angry whenever he hurt his sister.

Instead, his mother thought it over quietly. She pursed her lips together before meeting his eyes,"I guess the best thing to be would be apologizing, yes?" She asked him. Steve nodded slightly,"Yes, but I suck at apologies." He reminded her. His mother cracked a small smile,"Then you are just like your father, Steven. But I don't think that's a bad thing. Your father wasn't always... like this. Okay? He was like you and sometimes, he still is. He's just stressed out at work now, honey. You know how hard his job is. But I promise you... he cares just as much as you do. He just has more trouble showing it than you. He'll find a way to apologize when he's ready, just like you will too." She assured him.

Steve managed a small chuckle,"Maybe you should go talk to Reagan. You're better at cheering her up than I am... all I did was break her lipstick." He admitted, scratching the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact knowing that his mother would be mad he ruined more of Reagan's makeup supply.

He heard his mother sigh, and he lifted his eyes gently to watch her get up from her chair and walk over to her purse. Mrs. Harrington reached inside and grabbed her wallet. "Which one was it?" She inquired. "You know, the kind soft pinkish one." Steve explained. His mother handed him money,"Next time you do this, you are getting a job to pay for it." Mrs. Harrington warned him. Steve chuckled a little,"You're not– you're not serious, are you?" He questioned. "Because you and Dad both work enough to pay–" The boy stopped when he realized what he was saying. "I should just shut up and go get dressed... shouldn't I?" Steve asked.

"Yes." His mother simply nodded her head, smiling softly at her son as he picked up his plate. "I'll just finish this upstairs." Steve said, exiting the kitchen before he could stop her. "You better bring that plate down when you're done, Steven!" Mrs. Harrington warned him. "You know I won't!" Steve called from the stairs, making his mother roll his eyes.

* * *

Reagan opened her locker, reaching inside for her math textbook, knowing she had that class later on in the day following lunch. She sighed and closed her locker. The girl jumped at the sight of the redhead, who leaned against the lockers casually. "Don't act so surprised." Carol said, eying the girl as she pushed herself off of the lockers. "You know I always meet you here before lunch." She reminded her, offering her arm to Reagan. The blonde just shook her head a little, hugging her math textbook close to her chest. "God, what is with you today?" Carol questioned as she lowered her arm.

"N-nothing." She replied softly, barely able to meet Carol's harsh stare. The two began walking in silence down the hall, as others students walked pass. "So... did you hear about that Byers kid? I mean, you babysat him, so I guess you expected that the queer was out late and fell off a cliff or something. I'm thinking he was probably dropped on his head as a child to be so dumb. His mom was lucky she got someone as good as you to look after him because she sure didn't to let her kid die like that. And did you hear that she's going a little off the rocks lately? Some of the cops were mentioning during those search parties that she–" "Carol, can you just shut the fuck up for once?" Reagan snapped, surprising her best friend.

Carol knew very well that not only did Reagan not use that kind of language most of the time, but that Reagan would never even dare to speak up against her. Before Carol could say anything back to Reagan, the two were interrupted by a familiar brunette. "So sorry, can I steal Reagan from you? Thanks." Nancy said, grabbing Reagan's hand and dragging the blonde down the hall and turning the corner. Nancy didn't stop walking until the two hit an exit, and Nancy pushed open the door.

She walked outside, letting go of Reagan's hand. "Sorry, but I needed to talk to you. To be fair, I don't think you were enjoying that conversation much anyways." Nancy pointed out. Reagan opened her backpack, slipping her math textbook inside,"How could you tell?" Reagan joked lightly, swinging her backpack over her shoulders. Nancy frowned small before remembering there was another reason she had pulled the girl away from Carol.

"I think we need to talk to your brother. What we saw yesterday in your backyard– I mean... the no face thing... and– I couldn't help but think of it on the way home. I kept thinking something terrible happened to Barb so I talked to my mom and–" Nancy stopped when she noticed the expression on Reagan's face. "Are you okay?" The brunette took the time to stop in her tracks to focus on Reagan for a moment. "Is it about Will?" She asked gently.

Reagan let out a shaky breath before nodding her head. "Yeah... I thought... I thought I could go to school today but everything is too overwhelming for me." She admitted, hanging her head, almost if she was ashamed of her behavior. Nancy frowned and pulled the girl into a hug,"No... no, it's okay, Reagan. Sometimes... I feel exactly the same." She confessed, letting out a sigh of relief when she felt the girl hug her back.

They remained still for a moment before pulling away from each other. Reagan looked at Nancy,"We should talk to Steve. We should find out what happened to Barb, make sure she's okay. I'll be fine. I promise." She told her. Nancy nodded her head a little,"The second you're not fine, you tell me, okay? I'm not going to push you to do anything that you can't." Nancy assured her. "I'm fine, Nancy... really. Thank you... for making sure." Reagan said, a little embarrassed when she realized this was behavior she wasn't used to coming from a friend, especially a female one.

* * *

"So, wait a sec." Steve told the two girls, before looking to his girlfriend. "I don't understand. You went to my house not to hang out with Reagan yesterday? I thought you two were becoming friends." Steve said, a little confused with the situation. "We are," Nancy insisted,"But I went to look for Barb." She explained. Steve nodded his head a little as he stuffed his hands into his pocket,"Yeah, okay, but why didn't you just tell me? That's crazy." He questioned her.

Nancy shook her head a little,"I don't know... I– I was scared. So was Reagan." She said, looking over to the blonde. Steve looked between the two,"You both seriously think you saw a guy in mask just hanging out in our yard?" He asked, looking to his sister. "I don't think it was a mask." Nancy admitted. "But he had no face?" Steve raised his brows.

Reagan frowned a little,"Steve, it– it looked real." She shrugged her shoulders, having trouble wrapping her head around it too. "Real?" Steve questioned, looking back over to Nancy. "I don't know!" Nancy exclaimed, knowing it was a weird situation to be describing. "I don't know, I just... I have a terrible feeling about this." Nancy stated.

"Oh... this is bad. This is really bad." Steve realized, looking down to the ground. He walked over and leaned against the opposing wall. "What?" Nancy asked, looking to Reagan for clarification. The blonde caught on quicker than she did,"Steve–" Reagan began but he just shook his head. "The cops... they're gonna want to talk to all of us now. Tommy, Carol, everybody who was at the party." He said, looking to his sister.

"So?" Nancy crossed her arms, not seeing the problem with it yet. "My parents are gonna murder me! And ground her!" Steve exclaimed, gesturing to Reagan. "Are you serious right now?" Nancy looked at her boyfriend, finding it hard to believe that's what he was prioritizing at the moment. "You don't understand. Our dad's a grade-A-asshole." Steve told her.

"Barb is missing! And you're worried about your dad?" Nancy questioned him. Reagan pursed her lips together, knowing how Steve's relationship with their father was. "Okay, just... when you talk to the cops, just... don't mention the beers." Steve suggested, hoping that would lessen any punishment that would come. "It's just gonna get us all in trouble, and Barbara's got nothing to do with it, okay?" He asked.

Nancy scoffed lightly,"I can't believe you right now. I can't believe you." Nancy finished, fed up with her boyfriend's actions. "Nancy. Nancy, wait! Nancy!" Steve called after he as she stormed off. He then looked over to his sister, who had her arms crossed over her chest.

He sighed,"Please don't tell me you agree with her, Reagan." Steve practically begged, not being able to stand if she was more mad at him than she already was. "Reagan... please don't... don't– come on. Come on, Wonder Twin." He said, looking at her, praying she was still on his side.

"You 'come on' yourself, Steve." She told him with a frown, before uncrossing her arms and following after the girl.

* * *

Nancy was surprised to see her mother standing out waiting for her in the hallway when she was called out of class. Karen looked at her daughter with a sympathetic smile,"Hey, sweetie." Her mother greeted, wrapping an arm around her daughter. "I'm going to be right there when the police question you, okay? So you don't have to worry about anything." Karen assured her. Nancy nodded her head a little, watching as Reagan exited the cafeteria with her own mother. Reagan moved away from her mother to walk over to Nancy.

"Just one moment," Nancy whispered to her mother, moving away from Karen's embrace to go talk to Reagan. "Are you okay?" Nancy found herself asking again, noticing that the blonde's eyes were a little red. Reagan shrugged her shoulders meekly,"I don't know. They... they asked me their questions and dismissed my whole thing. Maybe you'll have a better time getting through to them. They think I'm out of it because of Will... just like Joyce or something– that's what one of them said." Reagan explained, sounding a little bitter about it. She looked down at her feet before looking back at Mrs. Harrington. Reagan turned her head back over to Nancy. "My mom's taking me home. You can call me later if you want." Reagan suggested.

She nodded her head,"Yeah, of course." Nancy agreed. Reagan smiled small and turned to go back to join her mother, but paused and looked back. "If you see Steve, tell him not to worry. Okay?" Reagan asked, scratching the back of her neck. Nancy nodded her head,"Of course. Feel better, okay?" Nancy told her, watching as Reagan walked away. She looked back to her mother, who gestured for her to enter the cafeteria where two policemen were waiting to question her. She knew it wasn't going to be easy, but hoped it wouldn't be that bad that she would leave upset like Reagan did.

* * *

"Reagan?" Jonathan asked, gripping the payphone tightly in his hands as he spoke. " _No, this is her mother speaking. How can I help you_?" The woman on the other line questioned, making the teenaged boy freeze up. "Uh... I– I– I thought Reagan was home. I just sort of figured she heard about Will and..." Jonathan trailed off, mouthing a few curse words to himself on how dumb he probably sounded like to the girl's mother. " _Well, Reagan did go to school today but she came home because she was too overwhelmed. Would you like to speak to her_?" Mrs. Harrington politely asked.

"Can I?"

Jonathan tapped his foot nervously on the other line, thinking he was probably insane to be calling the girl like this after everything that had happened yesterday. His mind was everywhere at once, concern over his mother's recent behavior, the death of his little brother, the funeral he had to plan, and over her. No matter how crazy things were, he couldn't get his mind off of her.

" _Hello_?"

He froze right back up at the familiar sound of her voice. " _Hello_?" Reagan asked again, getting no response from Jonathan. " _Hel_ –" "Reagan." Jonathan finally found the courage to speak, but after that his mind was met with dead silence once more on the words to say to her. He pressed his hand to his forehead, tapping his foot faster now as he stressed over what he could possibly say to her. " _Jonathan... why– why are you calling?_ " Reagan asked nervously, biting down on her lip as she sat on her bed, waiting for the boy on the other line to say anything back to her again.

"I... I can't talk to my mom right now. I... I don't know what she's thinking, I don't– I don't get what's going on in her head right now and I... I always thought I could at least talk to Will. I mean– not about everything but about most things. And I thought– I thought I could _finally_ talk to you. About anything. Or... close to anything but– I– I really don't know anymore." Jonathan said.

" _I get it, Jonathan. I'm so sorry. I'll leave you alone from now on... you were pretty clear yesterday._ " Reagan replied, disappointed and upset.

"No, Reagan, that's not where I was going with this." He stopped her before she could hang up. " _Where were you going?_ " She questioned.

"I need your help."

* * *

Mrs. Harrington handed her daughter her yellow jacket,"Do you have your inhaler?" She asked her. Reagan nodded her head lightly as she slipped on her jacket, placing her inhaler into her pocket. She quickly braided her hair into a long single braid down her back. As Reagan leaned down to put back on her sneakers, her mother moved to open the door to their house, noticing the car in the driveway where a boy waited inside at the driver's seat. "Your boyfriend's here." She notified her daughter.

"He's– he's not my boyfriend, Mom." Reagan clarified as she moved towards the door. "Did you guys break up?" Mrs. Harrington suddenly questioned her in concern. "We were never together, Mom. Where did you get that idea?" She asked her. "He took you to that dance. Remember? You know... what was it called again? The Snow Ball? You were upset that because Tommy had asked Carol and your brother was going with someone else and you made a huge fuss about going all by yourself. And then Jonathan showed up like a knight in shining armor on his bicycle over at our house and asked you to the dance with some flowers that he had picked and everything? You were so excited. I did your hair and your father bought you that dress that you loved because you thought you look like Sissy Spacek that horror movie before the whole blood and everything." Her mother reminded her.

Reagan chuckled nervously,"Mom, you probably don't remember it right. That was a really long time ago..." She mentioned, finishing tying up her shoe laces and standing back up. She moved past her mother and out the door. Mrs. Harrington leaned on the door frame,"I still remember it. He cleaned up so nicely. You two looked so cute together. I'm sure there's a picture around somewhere. And wasn't he your first ki–" "Mom!" Reagan exclaimed, looking back at Jonathan's car to realize he had recently turned his engine off.

"Just go! Go back inside and never talk about this again!" Reagan told her mother, closing the door in the woman's face out of embarrassment. The blonde took a deep breath to contain herself before turning around and watching Jonathan as he exited his car. Jonathan stopped in his tracks the minute he met eyes with Reagan. He pursed his lips together, noticing how different she looked that day. Not much had changed in terms of her appearance, but he could see the sadness hanging over her. Reagan moved towards him slowly, unsure where the two of them stood.

It seemed like no matter how hard they tried, something would always pop up that split them apart again. Maybe Jonathan had the right idea over the years, keeping his distance and never really talking to her. They had gotten close like this before, on that one night years ago, but Reagan was the one who ruined that and after that Jonathan went back to keeping his distance. Reagan admitted to herself that was something she didn't want again, especially after she realized that she wanted to get to really know Jonathan this time around. He looked at her, debating internally if he made the right choice. They stood a painful distance apart from each other, neither one of them making a move towards the other.

"I–" Reagan finally spoke up, but the words didn't come. This wasn't the comfortable silence that existed with them yesterday. It was awkward and it was becoming unbearable for Reagan. Yet she still couldn't find the words to break it. Jonathan looked at her for a moment and took a deep breath. He tapped his foot a little,"You know... your brother's an asshole." Jonathan mentioned. Reagan nodded her head,"I'm– I'm aware." She admitted. Jonathan sighed, meeting her eyes,"But... you're not. I don't want to be angry with you because if I am then... then I'll just lose it like my mom and I can't lose it right now. Will needs a funeral and I know no one else that cares about him as much as I do or my mom does but you. You care so... so nothing else matters now. Okay? Can we just put everything else on hold and go to the funeral home? Can you do that?" He asked.

She nodded her head softly,"Yes, I can do that, Jonathan." She promised him. Jonathan nodded his head at her,"Good... good. Come on." He nodded his head slightly over to his car, walking back over so they could drive to the funeral home.

* * *

"It's made of soft wood with a crepe interior." The funeral director said in a soft voice as Jonathan and Reagan stared blankly at the coffin in front of them. The situation seemed more real than ever and it was both making them feel awful inside. It didn't help that neither of them knew much about coffins either. "Uh, now, I... I don't know what your budget is, but over here, we... have copper and bronze." Jonathan let out a sigh as he followed behind the man. Reagan couldn't help but stare at the coffin, before looking up and noticing someone who stopped in the frame of the door.

Jonathan noticed Nancy too, stopping in his tracks at the sight of the girl. "Can you just give us a second?" Jonathan asked the man before looking over to Reagan. "Of course." He nodded, giving some space to the teenagers. Jonathan looked over at Reagan,"Is she here for you?" He asked quietly. Reagan shrugged her shoulders before walking over to Nancy.

"Hey." She said. Nancy smiled weakly,"Hey." The girl greeted Reagan before looking over to Jonathan. "Your mom, um... she said you'd be here." Nancy explained. "I just... can we all talk for a second?" Nancy asked, gesturing outside of the room. Jonathan looked to Reagan, and the blonde just nodded her head. "Is this about Barb?" Reagan asked as the three made their way out to the funeral home's hallway.

They found a bench, sitting down quietly. "One of the photos you took the night of the party..." Nancy trailed off as Jonathan sat down on the bench, reaching into her bag and pulling out the photograph that she had taped back together. "Barb's in it... and at the corner of the picture... I don't know what that is. I was hoping you could tell me." Nancy pointed to the spot on the photograph.

Reagan looked down at the picture before meeting Nancy's eyes. They both were probably thinking that it looked familiar, but Nancy had the right idea to check with Jonathan about it.

"It looks like it could be some kind of perspective distortion, but I wasn't using a wide angle." He said as he studied it. "I don't know." Jonathan confessed, handing the photograph back to Nancy. "It's weird." He added. Nancy looked a little disappointed by the answer,"And you're sure you didn't see anyone else out there?" She asked. "No. Reagan went inside. She was out there alone and she was there one second and then, um... gone. I figured she bolted." Jonathan explained simply.

"The cops think that she ran away." She told him, looking over to Reagan who was probably told the same thing. "But they don't know Barb." Nancy stated firmly. "And when we were at Reagan's... and I guess we thought we... saw something." She shrugged, looking at Reagan. "Some weird man or... I don't know what it was." Nancy let out a small sigh before looking back at Jonathan. Realization rained down on her when she realized this was probably not the time or place to be bringing all of this up. "I'm sorry." Nancy apologized to the two. "I... I shouldn't have come here today. I'm– I'm so sorry." Nancy grabbed her bag, standing up from the bench.

"Nance..." Reagan stopped her, not wanting the girl to leave just like that feeling like she had done something wrong. Jonathan whipped his head around to the two girls. "What'd he look like?" He asked. "What?" Reagan looked back at him, furrowing her brows. "This man you saw in the woods. What'd he look like?" Jonathan repeated the question.

The two girls looked at each other before back at the boy. "I don't know..." Nancy admitted. "It was almost like he..." Reagan chimed in, trailing off when she thought about how ridiculous it sounded. "He didn't have–" "Didn't have a face?" Jonathan cut Reagan off, raising his brows. Nancy stared at him,"How did you know that?" She questioned.

* * *

"And you're..." Nancy couldn't help but be confused as Jonathan worked on the photograph. They had returned to school after the funeral home, using the darkroom to develop the photograph more after Jonathan suggested it. "Brightening. Enlarging." Jonathan explained to her. Nancy grew a little restless, as Reagan stood patiently on the other side of the by. "Did your mom say anything else?" Nancy questioned, trying to find something to occupy her mind until Jonathan was finished with the photograph. "Like, um, where it might have gone to, or..."

Jonathan shook his head a little,"No, just that it came out of the wall." He clarified. Nancy gave a look over to Reagan, making the blonde raise her brows at her. "I– I'm going to call home. Check in with my mom and my brother. I'll be back, I'll just be going to office to use their phone." Reagan informed the two, exiting the darkroom. "Okay." Nancy said, looking back over at Jonathan to see him still working. When the boy moved over to one of the containers, she followed him over. "How long does this take?" Nancy asked, a little more reckless now that Reagan had left the room.

"Not long." Jonathan said simply. "Have you been... doing this for a while?" Nancy tried a question, hoping that the mostly silent boy would make any type of conversation while they waited. "What?" Jonathan asked quietly, a little confused by her question. "Photography?" Nancy tried to clarify. "Yeah... I guess I'd rather observe people than, you know..." "Talk to them." Nancy finished his sentence with a small smile. "I know. It's weird." He said.

She shook her head,"No." Nancy disagreed. Jonathan looked over,"No, it is." He insisted,"It's just sometimes... people don't really say what they're really thinking. But you capture the right moment... it says more." He explained. Nancy smiled small,"What was Reagan saying?" She asked. "What?" Jonathan said. "When you took her picture." Nancy reminded him.

He looked down,"I shouldn't have taken that. I– I still have to apologize to her about that..." Jonathan frowned. "You like her, don't you?" Nancy questioned. "What?" He was taken by surprise by her words,"I–" "That's it." Nancy's eyes had averted from Jonathan's, over to the photograph that had developed. "That's what Reagan and I saw." She pointed at the creature.

"My mom... I thought she was crazy 'cause she said that's not Will's body. That he's alive." Jonathan realized. "And if he's alive–" "Then Barbara." Jonathan cut Nancy off. The two were interrupted be the return of Reagan. "What's going on? Did I miss something?" She asked the two, making both of them turn around to look at her.

"Will... he's– I think he's still alive." Jonathan said.


	7. It Can Wait

**A/N: THAT SEASON 2 TRAILER! I couldn't breath the first time I saw it. It was amazing. It was iconic. I mean, Thriller playing in the background? It was so good. It gave me tons of energy just watching it. I love it so much and I honestly can't wait for Halloween.**

* * *

"Do you need help with that?"

Jonathan nearly jumped at the sound of Reagan's voice. He was surprised to see her, even though he knew she was coming to the funeral. She had helped him plan it after all. But he still didn't expect to see her in his house, and he was especially thrown off due to his father's arrival. Jonathan never liked seeing Lonnie pretending like he cared. It just made him feel sick to his stomach. The boy shook his head, studying the blonde's face in his mirror. "No– no, I'm fine." He insisted, throwing down the tie he had failed to tie. "I'd look stupid in it anyways." Jonathan remarked.

Reagan shrugged her shoulders,"I don't know if that's true." She said, walking into his room. She bent down, picking up the tie from the ground. "If I recall, I remember you once wearing a tie quite well." She said with a soft smile as she held the material in her hand. Jonathan vaguely shrugged at her. "I don't know what you mean." He lied, looking away as he reached for his jacket. He slipped the jacket on, turning back to see that Reagan's smile had melted off of her face.

"Reagan–" Jonathan began, but stopped when she reached over to place the tie around his neck. "Please, allow me." She whispered, and started to tie the tie. Jonathan couldn't breath all of a sudden, realizing how close she was to him. He was stiff as she finished the knot, tightening it gently underneath his shirt's collar. He didn't breath again until she was done. Jonathan turned his head, catching sight of himself in the mirror.

He didn't know what to think, seeing himself standing next to her, wearing the clothes he was wearing. It brought back memories he had spent a long time forgetting. He looked back at Reagan, feeling a little confused and dazed at the sudden deja vu. Jonathan reached up to his neck, loosening the tie and throwing it off. "It's– it's too tight." Jonathan swallowed a lump in his throat, ignoring the disappointed look Reagan was giving him.

Something was weird between them ever since Steve had broken Jonathan's camera. It felt like something was broken between them, and each were desperately trying to fix it in their own way but failing. Reagan frowned, clasping her hands together.

"I don't know what to do, Jonathan." She finally admitted, putting some distance between herself and him. "I don't know if you're still angry with me– or Steve. I don't know what to think about what Nancy and I found... and I don't know what to think about Will. I mean– I want to believe that he's alive, but what if he's not? What if what we found doesn't change anything?" She asked him.

"It does, Reagan. It changes at least something. I'm not sure of what we found yet either, which is why I'm not going to tell my mom anything, but I know it's at least worth a try. And look– we'll figure this all out together, okay?" He tried to assure her, taking her hands in his. She nodded her head a little, and Jonathan met her eyes as she looked up at him. "Jonathan?" Reagan said softly. "Yeah?" He asked.

"Are you still angry with me?" Reagan looked worried about the answer. She probably couldn't stand the guilt if the answer was a 'yes'. Jonathan shook her head as he looked at her. "No... no." He replied gently, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hands. Jonathan looked down at their hands together, finding some courage within himself. "Reagan?" He said, leaning his face closer to hers. "Yeah?" Reagan whispered.

Jonathan was cut off by a knock on the door. The two teenagers parted at the sight of the grown man staring at them. Lonnie studied his son for a moment, his eyes darting to the tiny blonde who had told him off only a few days ago. "It's time. I'm going to get your mother. Will you please make your way to the car?" Lonnie addressed his son, deciding to ignore Reagan all together. Jonathan scowled at his father, realizing that letting go of Reagan's hand when the man came in was the wrong choice. He took a hold of her hand, gripping it reassuringly. "We'll go together, right, Reagan?" Jonathan asked as he peered over at her.

"Right." Reagan replied, letting Jonathan lead her out of his bedroom. She didn't speak again until the two were outside of the house and she had her jacket underneath one arm. "I don't think your dad likes me very much." Reagan commented. Jonathan nodded his head, not denying the truth,"To be fair... you did call him an asshole." He cracked a small smile, making the girl chuckle a little. She nodded her head back at him, looking down at his hand that was still interlocked with her own. "Jonathan... what were you about to say? Before your dad walked in?" She couldn't help but ask.

He shrugged his shoulders. "It can wait."

* * *

The funeral was too real for Reagan. While originally she was going to sit next to Jonathan, the unexpected arrival of Lonnie forced her out of a seat. Jonathan was prepared to fight his father over it, but Reagan had given it up out of her own free will, deciding to stand alone. Her mother had offered to come, even Steve, but she denied their request because she believed she'd be right next to Jonathan during the whole thing. Now without a safe place to land right by her side, Reagan couldn't help but be absorbed by the whole ordeal.

As the pastor talked about God, Reagan felt numb. She had dealt with some doubt in her faith before when her grandfather died, but he was an old man that was ready to go. Will was just a kid, and even if there was a chance he could still be alive, seeing that casket being lowered into the ground was not helping. Reagan looked down at the yellow rose in her hand, pricking her index finger on one of the thorns.

Her mind was lost until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see Nancy's face, and her eyes softened at the brunette. "It's okay." Nancy whispered, taking a step closer so her mother wouldn't overhear. "Will's okay." She reminded Reagan. The blonde gave a small nod of her head,"Right." Reagan said, wiping the small bead of blood on her finger.

She waited until the service was done to drop the flower onto the casket. Reagan looked around at all the people who had come, feeling a little overwhelmed. She looked back to see Nancy had gone off with her mother. They had a plan to meet shortly after the funeral with Jonathan, but she knew Nancy would have to wait until her mother left with her brother in order to meet up with them. Reagan looked around until she finally caught eyes with Jonathan. She made her way over, pursing her lips together as she did so.

"Joyce." Reagan gained the woman's attention after softly calling her name. The woman had a vague look in her eyes, one that Reagan recognized. Joyce had been thinking about Will. She turned her head to look over at Reagan, suddenly remembering where she was. "Reagan– yes, thank you so much for coming. I thought the flowers were a nice touch." Joyce said, but her voice seemed empty for some reason. However, she reached over to give Reagan a hug, which felt real to the girl.

Jonathan studied Reagan until his mother let her go. Afterwards, he took her hand, knowing that since the whole funeral was ending that they would meet up with Nancy soon. "I'm going to walk Reagan home. I'll see you soon, Mom." Jonathan assured his mother, placing his free hand on her shoulder. The woman gave him a nod,"Okay." She whispered. The boy hated to see his mother that way, but knew if he wanted things to get better the best he could do was to find out what really happened to Will. He looked back to Reagan, before taking off with her to find Nancy.

The three teenagers met up together, and Jonathan let go of Reagan's hand. Nancy looked over at Reagan,"Did you bring it?" She asked. Reagan nodded her head, knowing that she wasn't too out of it that she would forget. Reagan took a seat with the two on the ground, leaning against the fence as she reached into her pocket. She unfolded the piece of paper, staring at the red 'x's that she had made the night before. Jonathan took the paper from her hand, studying the map.

"This is where we know for sure it's been, right?" He asked, looking over at Reagan for her confirmation. She nodded her head back at him. "So, that's..." Nancy began, pointing to one of the 'x's. "My house." Reagan clarified before pointing her own finger on another 'x'. "And that's the woods where they found Will's bike." She told them. "And that's my house." Jonathan concluded, seeing the pattern.

"It's all so close." Nancy noticed. "I know. Exactly." Reagan nodded her head as she took the paper back. "I mean, it's all within a mile or something." Jonathan pointed out,"Whatever this thing is... it's– it's not traveling far." He said. Nancy studied the boy's face for a moment before realizing,"You want to go out there."

Reagan frowned,"Are you crazy?" She asked him. Jonathan looked over at her,"We might not find something." He defended. Nancy frowned as well over at him,"Reagan and I found something." She reminded him,"And if we do see it... then what?" Nancy asked him. Jonathan sighed, thinking for a moment before addressing the two. "We kill it." He decided.

Another idea popped into his head. "Come on." Jonathan told the two, standing up from the ground and deciding to head for the car. He knew his parents would still be at the reception, leaving his father's car unattended. Nancy and Reagan shared a look before standing up, and going after the boy. Jonathan didn't say anything else until they reached Lonnie's car.

"Jonathan, what are you doing?" Reagan asked him. He didn't reply as he opened the car door. Leave it to Lonnie to never lock the damn thing, making Jonathan's job a lot easier. He pulled out a knife from his pocket,"Just give me a second." He said, jamming the lock. Nancy whipped her head around to make sure they weren't being watched.

When she turned back, her eyes went as wide as Reagan at the sight of the gun Jonathan pulled out. "Are you serious?" Nancy questioned him. "What? You want to find this thing and take another photo? Yell at it?" He said, closing the car door behind him as he left his father's car. "This is a terrible idea." Reagan pointed out, making Jonathan frowned. Out of all the people he could fight a monster with, it was two of the most rule abiding teenagers in all of Hawkins.

"Yeah, well, it's the best we've got." Jonathan said, stuffing the box of bullets into his jacket's pockets. "What? You two can tell someone, but they're not gonna believe you. You know that." He said. "Your mom would." Nancy guessed. "She's been through enough." Jonathan shook his head. "She deserves to know." Nancy argued. "Yeah, and I'll tell her... when this thing is dead."

Nancy looked disappointed, looking down at her watch to check the time. "I should make my way back or else my mom's going to be wondering where I am." She realized, looking at the two. She looked over at Reagan,"Call me, okay? You two figure something out and then we'll all meet up later." Nancy said. Reagan nodded her head, watching as the other girl left.

She waited until Nancy was gone to say something to him. "Jonathan, what if... someone gets hurts?" Reagan asked him. Jonathan shook his head,"No one's going to get hurt, Reagan." He said firmly. "How can you be so sure?" She crossed her arms over her chest, staring him down. "Because–" "Because, what? You'll make sure? This is not the time to be playing hero, Jonathan. This could be really dangerous." She pointed out.

At first, Jonathan mistook her tone for anger. It was only at a second glance that he realized Reagan was talking like this because she was scared. He placed his hand on her shoulder,"Reagan, nothing bad is going to happen. Me, you, Nancy– we'll be fine." He said. "But... but we have no idea what we're dealing with." Reagan mentioned. "How bad can it be?" Jonathan asked.

* * *

"So... at one point... you're actually supposed to hit the cans?" Reagan asked, following up the teasing with a light chuckle. Jonathan rolled his eyes as he looked over at her. "Like you could do any better." He commented, and Reagan shrugged her shoulders. "I can give it a shot." She grinned widely as Jonathan fought back his urge to cringe at her bad joke. Jonathan handed her the gun gently,"Whatever you do, don't shoot yourself. Or me." He warned her, taking a step back as Reagan held the gun in her hand.

She felt a little dangerous with it in her hand, which excited her just a bit. Reagan lined herself up with the targets, closing one eye and aiming the gun. She tried to imitate what she had seen in movies, which probably is why as soon as she fired the gun, the bullet shot nowhere near the targets that Jonathan and her had set up.

"You're supposed to hit the cans, right?" Nancy called over, smirking over at Reagan as the blonde lowered the gun. "In my defense, we both suck." Reagan said as she looked back at Jonathan, handing him the gun. Nancy looked between the two before setting down her bag and her baseball bat. "You ever shot a gun before?" Jonathan asked Nancy. She scoffed,"Have you met my parents?" She asked, making the two chuckle softly.

Jonathan nodded his head,"Yeah, I haven't shot one since I was ten." Jonathan said, refilling the bullets on the gun since Reagan and him had used up the last ones. "My dad took me hunting on my birthday. He made me kill a rabbit." He finished. "A rabbit?" Reagan asked, surprised she had never heard this story before. Though to be fair, there was a lot she didn't know about Jonathan.

"Yeah. I guess he thought it would make me into more of a man or something. I cried for a week." Jonathan admitted. "Jesus." Nancy commented. "What? I'm a fan of Thumper." He defended, making Reagan laugh a little. "I meant your dad." Nancy clarified. Jonathan nodded his head,"Yeah... I guess he and my mother loved each other at some point, but... I wasn't around for that part." He said, looking to see Nancy offering her hand.

He looked down at the gun,"Um, yeah. Just, uh, point and shoot. And try not to miss, like Reagan." He said, handing it over. Reagan frowned at him,"You missed too." She pointed out and he smirked over at her. Nancy looked down at the gun for a moment before back up. "I don't think my parents ever loved each other." She admitted. "They must've married for some reason." Reagan said, almost hopefully.

Nancy looked over at her, knowing the blonde probably always expected the best out of people. "My mom was young. My dad was older. But he had a cushy job, money, came from a good family. So they bought a nice house at the end of the cul-de-sac... and started their nuclear family." She said. "Screw that." Jonathan told her. Nancy aimed the gun,"Yeah, screw that."

All three of them were shocked to see Nancy take down one of the cans with the gun. Reagan chuckled, wrapping her arm around the girl. "Look at you go, Nance!" Reagan cheered, while Jonathan gave her a soft chuckle of surprise. Reagan looked over at Jonathan,"I think we should trust her with the gun for now." She decided, and he nodded his head in agreement.

"What about you, Reagan?" Nancy questioned, looking over at the girl. "Since we're all sharing... what about your parents?" Nancy was curious, not only because Reagan was becoming her friend, but because of Steve too. "My mom's the sweetest person and my dad... he just brushes her off. Takes her for granted, you know? And that makes Steve angry... but it makes me– sad, I guess." Reagan shrugged her shoulders as she looked down. "So your dad is a dick." Nancy said, and Reagan nodded her head a little. "Just a bit." The blonde admitted.

* * *

The three teenagers were walking through the woods, Nancy with the gun in her hand and Jonathan sporting her baseball bat. Reagan carried nothing but her inhaler, completely defenseless but that didn't seem to bother her for some reason. She walked slower than the two, trying to conserve her energy. Both of them knew she wouldn't be walking too fast because of her asthma, so they didn't push her to walk any faster.

"You know, you never said what she was saying." Nancy whispered to Jonathan as they walked ahead. He was taken by surprise by Nancy's question, looking back to see that thankfully Reagan hadn't heard. "What?" Jonathan asked her, furrowing his brows. "Yesterday." She reminded him. "You said that Reagan was saying something and that's why you took her picture." Nancy looked back at Reagan, smirking over at Jonathan with a raised brow. The boy hid a blush as he looked down,"Oh, uh... I don't know."

"My guess... I saw this girl, you know, trying to be someone else. But for that moment, it was like she was alone, or at least she thought she was. And, you know, she could just be herself." He shrugged. Nancy frowned when she realized that Reagan had caught up with them. Reagan looked at Jonathan with a frown,"You think I'm trying to be someone else?" She asked him.

Jonathan and Nancy watched as the blonde rushed past them. "Reagan!" Jonathan called after her, jogging to catch up with her. "I didn't mean it to offend you, but you have to admit–" "Have to admit what? Is that why you took my picture? Because you think I'm just some fake?" She questioned, crossing her arms. "No, no! I think you're amazing, but–" "But what? You think you know me because you think you know my brother or my friends? Steve's a good guy. Nancy could tell you that herself. I know what he did was wrong but I'm not pretending to be anyone other than me when I'm around him or my friends–"

"God, will you listen to yourself?" Jonathan asked her. "Who are you trying to convince? Me or yourself? And listen– don't take it so personally, okay? I don't like most people. He's in the vast majority. But you– you're supposed to be the minority. And if you can't see it, shouldn't I say something? As someone who's actually your friend?" Jonathan paused, meeting her eyes as he calmed himself down.

"You always look so miserable when you're with them– Carol, Tommy. It looks like you're just drowning in this person you've created just to please them. And when you're with them, I honestly can't see any bit of who you really are, Reagan. You should be with people who don't force you to hide who you are and who you want to be. You shouldn't settle for mediocre popularity just because you're afraid to be alone. You're not alone, Reagan. No matter what, you'll always have your asshole of a brother. And no matter what, you have me now too. You always have had me. But I'm sick of waiting around for you to realize that." Jonathan told her honestly, shaking his head when he had finished talking. He walked off, leaving Reagan with tears in her eyes.

Nancy looked at Reagan, walking slowly towards her. "Reagan– I'm so sorry." She apologized, feeling partly responsible for that whole outburst considering she had brought it up in the first place. Reagan shook her head,"Why? He's right." Reagan realized, looking down on the ground. She wanted to move, but felt frozen in place. Nancy eventually put her hand on her back and began leading her in the direction Jonathan had walked off in.

* * *

Night had fallen and at this point the three had pulled out their flashlights. None of them had found anything up to this point, which disappointed both Jonathan and Reagan, who seemed to be in the mood to fit over the little quarrel they had earlier. Nancy had fallen victim to the awkward tension that had settled between the two, and it almost hurt her to see how much the two liked each other but how little they both acknowledge their feelings.

Reagan stopped walking suddenly, which got Jonathan's attention. "What, you tired?" He asked her, his temper still short with the blonde. Nancy froze as well, picking up on what the blonde was hearing. "Shut up." Nancy told him as she narrowed her eyes. "What?" Jonathan asked the two.

"I heard something." Reagan informed him, looking around. Finally, Jonathan was able to pick up on the soft whimpering as well. The three shined their flashlights in the direction of the noise, following it until they got closer. "Oh, God." Nancy said as soon as the wounded deer came into the view of her flashlight. Reagan frowned as she took a step closer. "What did this?" She asked as she kneeled down. "It's been hit by a car." Nancy said, noticing the pattern of the wounds. Reagan gently touched the deer, hearing its whimper. She looked to Nancy,"We can't just leave it." She begged.

Nancy looked back at Jonathan, before looking down at the gun in her hand. She wasn't sure if she had the stomach to do it. "I'll do it." Jonathan offered, hoping to spare either of them the displeasure. He offered his hand to Nancy. "I thought you said–" "I'm not a kid anymore." He assured her.

The three stood up, staring down in pity for the wounded animal. Before a shot could be fired by Jonathan though, something from the shadows pulled the animal away. They all gasped from the shock. "What was that?" Nancy asked, beginning to get worried. They shared a look with each other, silently agreeing that this was the monster they came hunting for. They tracked it through the blood left behind from the deer, neither one of them saying anything.

"Where'd it go?" Nancy whispered, looking around. "I don't know." Jonathan shook his head, shining around his flashlight. "Do you see anymore blood?" He asked them. "No." Nancy replied, turning around to see Reagan stopped in front of a tree. "Reagan, what is it?" She asked, walking over to see that the girl was standing still. Something was dripping down from the opening in the tree, which appeared to be hollow. The two girls took a look, noticing that there was blood on the ground inside.

Reagan kneeled down, which surprised Nancy. "What are you doing?" She asked. "I'm going after it." Reagan said firmly, crawling forward with her flashlight in hand. Nancy watched as the girl crawled through, her eyes going wide. "Jonathan?" She called, receiving no reply. He must've wandered off too far to hear her. Nancy didn't want to leave Reagan to go wandering off on her own after the monster, and decided to crawl in after her.

When Reagan made it to the other side, she noticed her flashlight started to flicker. She stood up, wiping her hands on her pant legs. Nancy followed her in right away, standing up after the girl. Her flashlight acted similarly, which made Reagan narrow her eyes. The two looked around, seeing no sign of life. The area around them seemed familiar, but entirely differently somehow.

The sound snarling made them both whip their head around. Nancy froze at the sight of the monster feeding on the wounded deer. She gripped onto Reagan's arm, but the blonde seemed even more scared than she was. The two shared a frightened look, knowing they would have to back out of their slowly if they wanted to go undetected by the creature. Reagan took a step back, cracking a twig by accident. The monster whipped its head around, opening its mouth to the girls and setting off their terror.

Reagan screamed, and the two girls dropped their flashlights as they made a run for it.

Jonathan was able to hear Reagan's scream, even if the two happened to be in another dimension. "Reagan!" He yelled, whipping his head around and shining his flashlight around. He ran in the direction of her voice, stumbling along Nancy's baseball bat and backpack. Jonathan didn't see them anywhere in sight. "Nancy! Reagan!" He called, receiving no reply. He rushed around, hoping they weren't too far away, and hoping nothing bad had happened to them.

"Jonathan! Jonathan!" Reagan yelled, hearing the boy's voice nearby but seeing him nowhere. "Jonathan, we're right here! Jonathan!" Nancy called, hearing his voice in the distance but around every corner they turned they didn't seem to find him. Reagan started panting and reached for her inhaler. Before she could get a chance to take a puff, Nancy and her turned a corner, seeing the creature growl at them.

Nancy dragged her off, oblivious to what she did as the girls ran for their lives. "Nancy, Reagan, follow my voice! I'm right here!" They heard in the distance, deciding to follow the boy's voice. Nancy and Reagan ran until Reagan started wheezing. They stopped behind a tree.

Reagan couldn't contain her wheezing as Nancy looked at her. Nancy started to freak out, hearing the sounds of the creature close by. Reagan put the inhaler up to her mouth, breathing in a few puffs that calmed her down for a moment. She however kept panting, which wasn't a good sign. "It's not working." Reagan breathed out, knowing she couldn't take more than a few puffs at once or else it would be bad for her. Nancy frowned,"Reagan–" Nancy whispered, but cut herself off when they heard the creature pass their hiding spot.

They heard Jonathan's voice once again, and Nancy looked over to see that it was the tree that they had crawled through. Nancy and Reagan shared a look, knowing they had to make a run for it before the monster got them.

Jonathan jumped back at the sight of Nancy's hand breaking through. "Jonathan!" Nancy yelled. "Nancy!" Jonathan realized, grabbing onto her hand and yanking her out of the hole in the tree. Nancy fell back onto the ground, sobbing as Reagan reached her hand through. "Reagan." Jonathan took a hold of her arm, pulling the blonde out. She was breathless as she came out, clutching tightly onto her inhaler in one hand.

However, when he was pulling her out, Jonathan felt something pull back. Reagan screamed in fear until Jonathan managed to yank her out of her, watching as whatever hole they crawled out of was sealing shut. Jonathan looked down at Reagan's ankle to see that the hem of her jeans had caught against something, but she wasn't hurt. When he looked up however, he saw that she was still breathless.

"Reagan–" Jonathan's relief washed away as she started to wheeze and cough. Reagan's vision went blurry as the boy held onto her, as she desperately tried to breath normally again. "Is she having an asthma attack?" Nancy asked him, sitting up and looking at Reagan. Reagan was having a coughing fit, in between rapid breathing. She was in full panic which didn't help.

She weakly reached her inhaler back to her lips, breathing a few puffs. "Reagan– Reagan... look at me." Jonathan whispered, meeting her eyes. Reagan removed her inhaler, still taking quick breaths. Her chest was tight and that scared her, but she looked over at Jonathan. "You're okay." He assured, pulling the girl in tight. Jonathan held her until he felt her breathing stabilize, and both him and Nancy let out a sigh of relief.

* * *

Jonathan wrapped his sweater around Nancy, knowing she was still coming down emotionally over what just happened. "Thanks." She whispered, still looking at her hands opposed to him. Jonathan nodded his head, unaware they were being watched. "No problem." He told her, sighing a little as he stood up from her bed. Jonathan looked to her window, seeing no one there.

"I– Reagan could've died tonight." She said quietly to herself. Jonathan frowned and nodded his head. "But neither of you did. Which is a good thing. And now we know what we're up against." He said, trying not to focus too hard on what had just happened to them. Nancy turned her head to look at him,"I don't know if we're still capable of handling what's out there." She admitted. Jonathan pursed his lips together, not sure what he could say to make the girl feel better.

Before he could answer, Reagan opened the door to Nancy's room. She came inside, dressed in a pair of Nancy's gym clothes, which included a pair of Hawkins High School sweatpants and t-shirt. Her wet hair hung loosely around her shoulders, dripping a little on her shoulders. "I... I bumped into your mother. I told her I was sleeping over and forgot a pair of pajamas." Reagan explained. Nancy nodded her head gently,"That's– that's okay." She said, handing Jonathan his sweater back. "I'm going to take a shower too." Nancy told them, grabbing her pajamas and heading towards the washroom.

She closed the door behind her, leaving Reagan and Jonathan alone. The two shared a look before Jonathan decided to break the silence. "Are you okay?" He asked her. Reagan shrugged her shoulders,"I'm not sure." She replied honestly. Jonathan nodded his head a little, knowing there was a lot of tension between them. It didn't help that Reagan and Nancy were traumatized over what they had just seen. Jonathan frowned, rubbing the back of his neck,"I'm sorry– for what I said today. It was... over the line. I– I shouldn't have all those things." He told her. Reagan shook her head,"No– don't apologize for that. You were right. About everything." She admitted.

He thought that it would feel better to hear that he was right about that, but Jonathan didn't really feel all that good about being right. "Did you mean it?" Reagan asked him suddenly. Jonathan furrowed his brows,"Mean what?" He questioned. "When you said that I have you... that I _always_ have had you? Did you mean that?" She asked him gently. Jonathan softened his gaze at her before nodding his head. "I still do." He answered. Reagan smiled softly, moving forward and wrapping her arms around him. She hugged him tightly, and Jonathan softly wrapped his arms around her as well. He rested his head on hers for a moment and they remained that way for awhile.

Eventually, the two parted, sharing a soft smile between the two. Jonathan looked around the room, remembering he had to set up a bed for himself for the night. He looked around for an extra blanket, which Reagan looked for pillows. Nancy came back into her room, softly closing the door behind her and locking it. Jonathan had set a blanket on the ground when she had walked in. "Better?" He asked her.

"Yeah." Nancy nodded, though her face didn't show it. Jonathan stood up slowly,"Is this okay? Uh, I found it in the closet." He said, looking at Nancy. "I can go home, I just figured–" "Yeah, no. I... I don't want to be alone. Do you?" She asked. Jonathan shook his head back at her.

Nancy made her way over to her bed, looking at Reagan. "Will you sleep next to me?" She asked her quietly. The blonde nodded her head, which made Nancy feel better. Reagan settled herself next to Nancy, studying the girl for a moment. "You know... it can't get us in here." Reagan tried to reassure her but all Nancy did was grip onto her covers. "We don't know that." Nancy whispered.


	8. Twelve Minutes

Jonathan was the last one to wake up.

He was a little surprised to find Reagan on the floor next to him, still wearing Nancy's gym clothes which were a little wrinkled from having slept in them. Reagan sat down cross-legged, her elbows resting on her knees and her chin resting on her palms. She was staring at Nancy, who was sitting on her bed flipping through a book and jotting down notes. Jonathan squinted as he pushed down on his hands to sit up next to Reagan. "Hey..." He said softly, looking at her. When he noticed what she was doing, he followed Reagan's gaze over to Nancy. "What's going on?" He asked.

"She's been like this since I woke up." Reagan whispered over to him, sending him a tired smile. "Ten minutes ago." She added as she looked back. "Though I haven't determined if she has noticed or not." Reagan held back a chuckle, only because she was too tired to even attempt one. She had always been a morning person, but that was only because Reagan would always sleep the night before. However, after the events of the previous night, she too found herself restless like Nancy. Instead of resorting to studying however, Reagan did manage to sleep, if only for a little while.

Nancy barely looked up at the two, continuing her writing. "Just because I'm not paying attention to you, Reagan, doesn't mean I do not have ears." Nancy commented, pursing her lips together. Reagan smirked at the girl's response, looking to Jonathan who smirked back at her.

Jonathan settled himself in a cross-legged position similar to Reagan, studying the look on Nancy's face. "Couldn't sleep?" He asked. Reagan had already established that she managed to nod off along with him, but it looked like Nancy's little set up on her bed had been going on for awhile. Nancy shook her head a little, looking down at the book next to her. "Every time I close my eyes, I just... keep seeing that... thing." She admitted, looking over to Reagan. Reagan pursed her lips together and nodded her head a little, understanding what Nancy was going through.

They had both been through hell and back.

"Wherever we were, that place... I think that it lives there. It was feeding there. Feeding on that deer. That means that if... if Will and Barbara..." Nancy trailed off, tapping her pencil nervously. Jonathan frowned in sympathy,"Hey. My mom said she talked to Will. If he's alive, there's a chance Barbara is, too." He insisted. Nancy looked at him,"But that means that she's trapped in that place." She argued, looking to Reagan. "We have to find it again." Nancy decided.

Reagan's went wide a little,"You wanna go back out there?" She questioned, not believing what Nancy was saying at first. Nancy's expression changed and she looked back to her book. "Maybe we don't have to." She explained. "When we saw it, it was feeding on that deer. Meaning it's– it's a predator, right?" Nancy said. Jonathan nodded his head,"Right." He agreed. "And it seems to hunt at night, like a... lion or a coyote." Nancy pointed to her book, letting Jonathan and Reagan in on what she was researching. "But it doesn't hunt in packs like them." She concluded.

"It's always alone like... like a bear. And remember at Steve's, when Barb cut herself? And then last night... the deer." She reminded them. "It was bleeding too." Jonathan realized. Nancy flipped over to a new page. "Sharks can detect blood in one part per million. That's one drop of blood in a million, and they can smell it from a quarter mile away." She informed them. "So you're saying it can detect blood?" Reagan asked, looking at the drawing of the shark. Nancy shrugged,"It's just a theory." She said.

"We could test it." Jonathan suggested. The three nodded their heads in agreement. "But... if it works–" "At least we'll know that it's coming." Nancy cut him off, meeting his eyes. The conversation was heavy for all three, mostly because the teenagers knew that more than half of them almost died the night before facing the creature. Neither of them knew what would happen if they were to face it again.

The door knob rattled suddenly, sending the teens into a mild panic. Jonathan instinctively grabbed Reagan's hand and yanked her closer to him, which made the blonde grip onto his t-shirt. Nancy gripped her book, calming down at the sound of her mother's voice. "Honey, are you up? Is Reagan? I made blueberry pancakes." Karen called from the other side of the door. "I– uh– We're just getting dressed. Reagan and I'll be down in a second." Nancy told her.

After Karen's footsteps retreated, the tension in the air was broken by Jonathan. He gently let go of Reagan's hand, looking at her before looking at Nancy. "Your mom doesn't knock?" He asked her. His question made the two girls smile, both thankful that he defused the nerves the three had been packing due to their previous conversation.

* * *

"I have some clothes you can borrow." Nancy said, laying down some perfectly folded clothes down on her bed. "Just washed too so... bonus." She smiled optimistically, before moving over to her dresser and grabbing her scrunchie. Nancy pulled her hair into a ponytail as Reagan picked out a couple of items. Jonathan looked over at Nancy's sound system, browsing through her selection of music. He picked out a song, playing it to the girl's surprise.

They both gave him a look. "What?" Jonathan asked before leaning over Nancy's bed. He selected a t-shirt from the pile and tossed it over to Reagan. "This one." Jonathan suggested. "Now you're the fashion expert, Jon?" She asked him with a tiny laugh, taking the shirt he had tossed to her in her hands. Jonathan hid a smile as he tapped his foot to the music he had put on. Nancy was already dressed, and Jonathan was sticking to the clothes he had been wearing the night before, so there was only Reagan left to change before they headed off. "I'll be back." She said, exiting Nancy's bedroom and making her way to the bathroom in order to change.

Nancy smiled a little before looking over at Jonathan,"You know, it's weird." She said suddenly, gaining his attention. Jonathan looked over at her,"Hmm?" He raised his brows at her. Nancy shrugged her shoulders a little,"Never mind, it can wait." She decided, moving to put away the extra clothes on her bed. "What can?" He asked, a little confused.

She shrugged her shoulders again,"It's just– I don't know. I mean... it's just... before today, I could probably count the amount of times I've seen you happy on one hand. But when Reagan's around? I– I lost count." Nancy noticed, putting away her clothes in her drawers. Jonathan blushed slightly out of embarrassment,"I don't know what you're t-talking about." The slight stutter gave him away, and he averted his eyes from Nancy.

"It's not a bad thing, Jonathan. Finding someone who makes you happy. It's actually a good thing." She informed him. Jonathan rolled her eyes,"Because Steve makes you so happy?" He retorted. Nancy frowned mildly, but nodded her head none the less.

"He does, actually. He might act like an idiot– but he does." She admitted to him. Jonathan nodded his head a little,"Well, he is an idiot–" He cut himself off when Nancy sent him a small glare. He sighed as he looked at her, feeling a little uncomfortable that she was seeing right through him. "Reagan–" Jonathan began, unsure of what to say. He wasn't sure if he was ready to admit his feelings, even if Nancy could clearly see them.

"Reagan's... a goofball. And that makes me– smile. She's so... dorky. She gets so excited over the smallest things– like french fries and good books. And she's... she's herself around me. Makes me feel safe. Like I can be myself around her too." Jonathan played it off casually, but his words make Nancy grin at him. "Jonathan– I have a question and I hope you don't mind me asking but... how long have you been in love with her?" She asked gently.

Jonathan froze for a moment. "L-love?" He stammered, a little dazed at the question. It had never occurred to him once that his feelings might go as deep as love. He never had a good relationship to look up to, between his parents and how they acted, and he always thought that a romantic connection between two people was something he would never really get close to. "I'm not in love with–"

He was cut off by the door opening once more. Reagan entered Nancy's bedroom, dressed with a soft smile on her face. She shifted her bangs a little so they wouldn't fall into her eyes and she looked between Nancy and Jonathan. "What's up? What were you two talking about?" Reagan questioned them. Jonathan looked at Reagan with wide eyes, like he was seeing her for the first time all over again.

Only difference before was that Jonathan was seeing Reagan and this time he was realizing why he was staring in the first place.

"How Steve's a big idiot." Nancy saved Jonathan, looking at Reagan with a hand on her hip. Reagan chuckled at her,"Oh, you have no idea. I have endless childhood stories that he will never _ever_ be able to live down." She informed her. Nancy smiled in excitement, knowing that she would love to shame her boyfriend from time to time just to put him in his place. Reagan looked over to Jonathan, expecting him to add to the conversation but he just kept staring at her with wide eyes.

"Is he okay?" Reagan looked back to Nancy with furrowed brows. "He'll be fine." Nancy insisted, grabbing Reagan's inhaler from her bedside table. "I'll go grab us some jackets. Keep this close." Nancy told her, passing the inhaler to its rightful owner. Reagan smiled at the brunette and nodded her head, looking at her as she exited the room. Reagan looked back over to Jonathan after Nancy left. "You okay?" She asked him.

"F-fine." He answered.

* * *

It was weird being at an army surplus store for Reagan. While neither one of them had much experience in being in a store such as that one, Jonathan and Nancy were handling it better than Reagan was. She felt a little dumb, only because she knew she was passive. She wasn't willing to fight for anything, unlike Jonathan and Nancy. She was weak, and looking at knives just made her feel weaker.

Jonathan appeared behind Reagan, noticing she was eying the knives with an uneasy look. He gestured to a few of them, reaching his arm over her shoulder. "Those are good." He suggested. Reagan looked back, frowning when she realized that she was the only one of them that needed help. She was given one job and Jonathan had to come help her with it. Reagan picked out three knives, staring at them in her hands. "You didn't have to do that." She told him, her head hung low.

He studied her for a moment,"Reagan," Jonathan said, trying to get her attention but she wouldn't look up at him. "Reagan." He repeated himself until she managed to look up slightly. " _None_ of us have ever done anything like this before." He reminded her. Reagan frowned,"But–" "But, what? Why are you second guessing yourself?" Jonathan asked her, a little confused on why she was being so insecure. "Because–" She insisted, raising her voice before grabbing a control of herself.

"Because... because Steve's the strong one. He's the older one, by a whole twelve minutes. He's always been good at sports. He's always been able to make people love him. He's likable and– he could use a baseball bat a lot better than I can and... I'm not– those thing, okay? I'm just... not. I tried kicking a soccer ball when I was six and I tripped over it. I barely hit anything in my entire life and– I can't even breathe properly, okay? I'm allowed to second guess myself." She told him.

Jonathan nodded his head, not denying what she was saying. She did have a big disadvantage with her asthma. "Are you really going to let a whole _twelve_ minutes between you and your brother define you? Sure, you got the short end of the stick, but that doesn't mean you can't do anything. You're capable of so much more, Reagan." He assured her.

She nodded her head a little back at him, looking down at the knives in her hand. "These ones?" She asked him to confirm. Jonathan nodded his head once more. "Yeah, those will do just fine." He reassured. Reagan smiled meekly, walking over to Nancy who was in the other aisle. Jonathan followed closely behind her.

The three made their way through the store, almost sure they had everything they needed until they stopped at the sight of bear traps. The teens looked at each other, and Jonathan was the first to nod his head. The others agree, taking their items to the clerk that awaited them. As they were being checked out, the adult gave the three of them a look.

"And uh– I'll have four boxes of the .38s." Jonathan said awkwardly to the man at the register after Nancy and Reagan had finished placing their items down on the counter. The man studied the three after placing down the boxes,"What you kids doing with all this?" He couldn't help but ask. Nancy looked over at Jonathan and Reagan, seeing if they would have answers for him. She then looked back at the clerk,"Monster hunting." She said truthfully. "Huh." The man said, scoffing a little underneath his breath as the cash register dinged.

When they made it outside of the store, Jonathan couldn't resist. "Monster hunting?" He smirked over at Nancy, and Reagan let out a small chuckle. Both of them really couldn't believe that she had said that to the clerk and he reacted the way he had. Reagan opened the trunk of the car for Jonathan, allowing him to put the box of their items in. Nancy looked at them,"You know... last week I was shopping for a new top I thought Steve might like. It took me and Barb all weekend. It seemed like life or death, you know? And... and now–" "You're shopping for bear traps with Jonathan Byers and Reagan Harrington." Jonathan finished.

She looked over the two and nodded her head. "Yeah." She confirmed. Jonathan closed the trunk,"What's the weirdest part? Me, Reagan, or the bear trap?" He questioned. Nancy smiled, looking over at Reagan in agreement. "You. It's definitely you." She told him, making the other two chuckle.

"Hey, Nance!"

Nancy's attention averted from Reagan and Jonathan, looking over to a passing car. "Can't wait to see your movie." A teenaged boy shouted out as he drove by with his friend. The three recognized the boy as someone they all went with to high school, but all were equally confused by what he meant. Nancy furrowed her brows, watching the car drive away. "What the hell was that?" Jonathan questioned. "I don't know." Nancy replied, before turning around. "Nance?" Reagan said, seeing the look in the girl's eyes. Nancy took off before Jonathan or Reagan could stop her.

"Hey, where are you going?" Jonathan asked. He and Reagan pursued the brunette, but she just took off down the street. It wasn't long until came into view. Nancy ran over, making Jonathan and Reagan chase her down the street. "Nancy!" Jonathan called after her, running faster than Reagan was. "Nance!" Reagan yelled, pausing when running became too much for her. Jonathan paused when he heard the blonde wheezing, waiting until she had a few puffs from her inhaler. "Come on, we'll walk." He told her, not wanting Reagan to exert herself.

They eventually caught up with Nancy, shocked at the sight that laid before the girl's eyes. Nancy stared up at the sign, seeing the cruel words spray-painted underneath the movie theatre's latest film, _All the Right Moves_. Seeing the word 'slut' so close to her name made Nancy feel rotten inside as she stared at it.

"Jesus." Jonathan mumbled, looking over at Reagan who was horrified. Nancy looked around, feeling the whole town's eyes on her as she walked by. As soon as she heard the sound of spray-painting not too far by, Nancy took off again. "Nancy!" Reagan called after her, looking to Jonathan before they took off once more to follow her.

Nancy turned down an alley, walking with determination as soon as she recognized the culprits. "Aw, hey there, princess!" Carol was the first to notice the brunette and smirked maliciously as soon as she saw her. "Uh-oh! She looks upset." Tommy teased as Nancy ignored them, approaching Steve. Silence fell until Nancy smacked Steve straight across his face, earning a vocal response from the group.

"What is wrong with you?" She demanded. "What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you?" Steve snapped back at her. "I was worried about you." He defended himself, staring down at her. "I can't believe that I was actually worried about you." Steve scoffed, looking away. "What are you talking about?" Nancy asked, completely confused.

"I wouldn't lie if I were you." Carol told her. "You don't want to be known as the lying slut now, do you?" The redhead threatened, just as Jonathan and Reagan approached the group. Reagan looked in disappointment at a girl she considered to be her best friend. "Speak of the devil." Tommy interrupted, his eyes on Jonathan. "Hi." Tommy said to him.

Nancy put two and two together, looking at Jonathan before back at Steve. "You came by last night?" She guessed. "Ding! Ding! Ding! Does she get a prize?" Carol asked as Tommy put his arm around her. "Look, I don't know what you think you saw, but it wasn't like that." Nancy insisted to Steve. "What, you just let him into your room to... study?" Steve asked her.

Tommy laughed,"Or for one of his infamous pervy photo sessions?" Tommy questioned, looking over to Reagan. "We were just–" "You were just what? Finish that sentence." Steve dared her, inching closer as he glared down at Nancy. "Finish. The. Sentence." He told her seriously. Nancy breathed out, struggling for an explanation that wouldn't make her or Reagan or Jonathan sound insane. When she didn't reply, Steve shook his head.

"Go to hell, Nancy." He told her.

"Steve!" Reagan gained her brother's attention, glaring at him. Steve turned back to look at his sister, seeing her standing next to Jonathan. "God, I should've known, right? Not only does the freak steal my girlfriend but my own sister too? You know, Byers, I'm actually kind of impressed. I always took you for a queer–" Steve said, walking over and shoving Jonathan as the three of them were backing away, prepared to leave. "But I guess you're just a little screw-up like your father." Steve taunted.

Reagan struggled to control herself, by Nancy took a hold of her shoulder, knowing it wasn't worth it to start a fight. Steve pressed on however, growing angry as the three turned their backs on him. "Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, that house is full of screw-ups. You know, I guess I shouldn't really be surprised. A bunch of screw-ups in your family. I mean, your mom! I'm not even surprised what happened to your brother. I'm sorry I have to be the one to tell you, but the Byers, their family, it's a disgrace to the entire–" After pushing Jonathan to the edge, Steve might have expected the boy to snap.

But the punch that swung back and sent him stumbling was more of an impact than Steve originally expected out of Jonathan. Steve took a moment, recognizing the boy's strength before running at him. "Steve!" Nancy yelled. "Steve, get off him!" Reagan shouted as her brother took Jonathan down. The boys fought, earning yells from the crowd that surrounded them. Reagan and Nancy were both yelling at the two to stop this, while Tommy seemed content in cheering Steve on.

"Steve!" Reagan called, until the tables turned for the worst and Jonathan was the one sending out unrelenting blows. "Jonathan, stop you're hurting him!" She screamed. It wasn't long until police took notice and the sounds of the siren wailing could be heard. The cops pulled up, moving to break the two apart like Tommy had attempted doing after Jonathan started beating Steve to a pulp. In the chaos, everyone was shouting and Jonathan accidentally hit a cop in the face.

Tommy helped Steve off the ground,"Come on!" He yelled, knowing they would have to run in order to avoid a trip down to the station. Steve stumbled back onto his feet, blood streaming down his face. Although his vision was blurry and he needed Tommy to support him, he could still see her. He could still see Reagan.

It was too much for her. It was too much yelling and the chaos was enough to send her into a panic. Steve could tell by her face that her chest was tightening up and she couldn't breath. But the panic was enough for her not to reach for her inhaler immediately, which was probably in her pocket somewhere. Everyone seemed distracted by everything else, until Steve shouted.

"Reagan!"

Jonathan took notice to Steve's words, whipping his head around to see Reagan's pale and sweaty face. She gripped onto her jacket, her turmoil being ignored as the cops dealt with him and Nancy was trying to deal with the cops. Tommy pulled Steve away, running after Carol and Nicole when he noticed a cop was nearing them. "Wait– wait! You have to help her! Please! Stop! You need to help her!" Jonathan yelled as he was being pushed down on the hood of a car. He felt handcuffs being forced on him. "Get off!" Jonathan yelled.

Nancy looked over to Reagan, breathing heavily herself. "Oh my God, Reagan!" She yelled as Reagan fell back onto the ground. All she could do was hold her chest as Nancy searched the pockets of her jacket for Reagan's inhaler. She wished she had gotten to it in time, but Reagan was having too much trouble breathing to do this to herself. Nancy struggled, not knowing very well how to administer an inhaler on someone.

"What's going on?" Officer Powell questioned. "She's having an asthma attack. She can't breath." Jonathan pleaded, still being held down. He looked helplessly as Reagan struggled to catch her breath. "We've got to get her to the hospital now. Come on." Powell gestured to Nancy, looking over to the police car. Nancy had managed to get Reagan to inhale a few puffs, but that didn't seem to stop the attack. She helped Reagan up, supporting the girl all the way to the car.

* * *

Jonathan stared down at his hands as he sat down at the desk. He couldn't help but replay the image of a breathless Reagan in his mind. Nancy had assured him that Reagan made it to the emergency room okay, but he had no idea if Reagan was alright. No call was made to the police station as of yet and Nancy wasn't telling him everything. He pursed his lips together, feeling guilty that Reagan was sent to the hospital because of his fight with her brother.

Both Nancy and her had tried to stop the two boys, but in the end Jonathan had let his anger get the best of him.

"Do you want me to go find some ice?" Nancy asked awkwardly, unsure if Jonathan was even aware she was sitting right next to him. He had been in a daze ever since they had arrived at the police station and she couldn't blame him. Not only was he in a huge amount of trouble, but Reagan was in the hospital.

Nancy studied Jonathan, waiting for a response. He finally acknowledged her, turning his head over to her and nodding vaguely. She pursed her lips together and stood up. "I'll be right back." She assured him, but he had gone back to being unresponsive. Nancy felt heavy as she approached the secretary. So much had happened in so little time that she was having trouble coming to terms with it all. "Excuse me, Miss..." Nancy interrupted the woman, who was currently on the phone. "Thank you." Flo finished the call before hanging up the phone. She adjusted her glasses and eyed the teenaged girl.

"Yes?"

The teenaged girl ended up cringing a little, mostly because she hadn't expected to be suddenly intimidated by the elderly woman. Nancy frowned,"May I please have some ice?" She asked politely, making sure to use her manners so the woman wouldn't get angry at her for interrupting what looked like an important phone call. Flo nodded her head, standing up from her chair. "Come on." She directed Nancy, and the brunette followed the older woman to the kitchen.

She waited patiently as Flo opened up the freezer and took out an ice tray. She opened up a drawer, grabbing a dishcloth. "Do you think we'll be out of here soon?" Nancy couldn't help but ask, hoping the woman had an answer. "If you're worried about that friend of yours, the hospital just called. She's going to be just fine." Flo mentioned, wrapping ice in the dishcloth. "But you'll be out of here quicker than he will. He assaulted a police officer." She reminded Nancy.

"Well, how long are you gonna keep him? He's gonna want to see her." Nancy defended. Flo looked up at her"The lovebirds have big plans, do they?" The woman asked. Nancy shook her head,"They're not together." She mentioned. "Do either of them know that? Only love makes you that crazy, sweetheart. And that damn stupid." Flo told her, handing over the wrapped ice. Nancy was surprised by the woman's words, walking back over to where she left Jonathan.

She sat back down next to him. "Found some ice." She said hopefully. "Thanks." He mumbled, acknowledging her vaguely. Nancy pressed the ice to his head. "Do you know if–" "Reagan's okay?" Nancy finished his sentence, and Jonathan nodded his head a little. Nancy smiled small,"She's fine." She assured him. Nancy looked at him gently before sighing. Jonathan furrowed his brows lightly,"What?" He asked.

Nancy shook her head,"It's nothing." She told him. Jonathan kept looking at her though and she sighed once more. "I just think... you should tell her." Nancy told him. Jonathan shook his head,"No. She's probably– she probably hates me by now." He muttered. Nancy looked at him,"Jonathan... Reagan could never hate you." She tried to assure him, but he didn't look like he was convinced by her.

* * *

Reagan's head felt like it was swimming as she sat perfectly still on the hospital bed. She rubbed her arms up and down, her eyes focused on the floor of the room. They had put her in that room to recover after giving her oxygen, and Reagan waited as they called her parents. She barely moved until a nurse came into the room and Reagan looked over with raised brows. "Your father is caught up at work. Your mother will be here shortly." The nurse informed her. "Uh... thank you." Reagan said softly, giving the nurse a warm smile before she left the room.

She moved to put back on her shoes, lacing them up tightly. The girl slipped back on the plaid shirt and jean jacket, and stood up from the bed. Reagan smoothed down the sheets when she heard someone come into her room. She turned around, expecting it to be her mother, but was surprised at the sight of Tommy. "What are you doing here?" Reagan questioned. "You're coming with me." Tommy asserted, walking over to Reagan and grabbing her elbow tightly. "Ow!" She reacted,"What do you think you're doing?" Reagan questioned him angrily as he dragged her out of the hospital room.

Tommy turned sharply down the hall, avoiding detection from any hospital staff. "Tommy!" Reagan exclaimed, trying to gain the boy's attention but failing. He pulled her down the halls, taking her out of the side entrance. "Tommy, what's going–" Reagan shut up as soon as she saw him. Her eyes softened at the sight of her twin brother. "Oh, Steve..." She whispered as she approached him.

"Come on, don't start acting like you care." Steve rolled his eyes, backing away from her when she reached out for him. "You jerk!" Reagan suddenly yelled, which surprised Steve. She usually didn't risk it after a severe asthma attack. "Of course I care." Reagan defended, looking fragile with tears in her eyes as she looked up at him.

"God, can we spare the family drama? Let's get out of here." Carol groaned as she linked arms with her best friend, dragging Reagan to the back seat of her brother's car. Reagan frowned as she was dragged along, but said nothing as Steve and Tommy got into the front of the car.

No one really said anything during the drive, besides a few annoying comments from Carol. The redhead was desperate to lighten the mood in the car but failed to realize both Steve and Reagan weren't looking to have the mood lightened one bit. Not after what happened. They pulled up to the convenience store before Steve turned off the engine. Tommy was the first to unbuckle his seatbelt. "I'll go grab you some aspirin. Reagan, you need anything?" He asked, looking over to the back seat.

She scowled slightly,"I think I got plenty of oxygen at the hospital, thanks." Reagan retorted. Tommy nodded his head,"Cool." He said shortly, exiting the car and heading inside. Reagan rolled her eyes, getting out of the car as well, which prompted the exit of Carol and her brother. Steve propped himself up on the hood of his car, ignoring the look Reagan was giving him.

Carol studied Reagan, brushing back a couple of blonde locks behind the girl's ear. "You okay, sweetie?" Carol asked, almost sympathetically. Reagan shook her head slightly,"No, not really." She mumbled, her eyes still on her brother. Tommy came back outside with a coke and a bottle of aspirin in his hands. "Hey." He greeted, tossing the pill bottle over to Steve who caught them.

"You owe me $1.20." Tommy reminded him, handing over the coke. Steve took an aspirin, cringing as he did so. He then pressed the cold can of coke to his eye. Reagan frowned as she looked at her brother, hating seeing him all beat up. "Steve–" "What?" Steve was quick to snap at her and cut her off, which only made things worse between them. She pushed past Carol and Tommy, getting into his face. "What's your deal, huh? What's bothering you so much that you can't even look at me?" Reagan demanded to know, unable to stand the cold shoulder he was giving her.

Steve frowned,"What bothers me so much is that you chose him over me!" He suddenly exclaimed, looking over at her. Reagan was little surprised to see him jealous, mostly because she had never seen him get jealous over her. She always assumed that she was the only one who had things to be jealous of. Steve was so likable by everyone, and he was athletic and strong. She never stopped to realize that Steve might feel the same way, over how smart she was and how she knew exactly what she wanted to do with her life.

"And the worst part is... I don't even know why." Steve finished, shaking his head a little. "I don't know why you'd pick some stupid guy you have a crush on over me. I'm your brother, your _twin_ brother. I'm supposed to be the one who knows you better than myself. But... I don't know you. Not anymore." He told her. Reagan pursed her lips together, staring at her brother with a hurt expression. She wanted to assure him that he did know who she was, but Reagan couldn't.

There was so much of herself that she hid from everyone, including him. Reagan nodded her head a little,"Then I'll just... go." She said quietly, turning on her heel. She made only a few steps before someone called off to her. "Go back to that freak!" Carol called, surprising Reagan. The blonde whipped her head around to look at her. "If you like him so much... then I guess that's what you're going to be from now on, isn't it? A freak." Carol said, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked down at her.

Reagan tried to purse her lips together and hold it in, but she couldn't anymore. "You know what, Carol?" Reagan challenged, walking back over to the group. "I have changed _everything_ just to get you to like me. Because I thought you were my friend and you convinced me that was what people did for their friends. But it's not. And you know what actually sucks? I used to like myself. I mean, I really did. But because you were miserable and I wasn't– you just... God, you just had to take that from me, didn't you? Because you have always been jealous of me. Because I have always had the chance of making something out of myself instead of ending up depressing, just like you. I'm sorry to break it to you, Carol, but I'm done letting you drag me down with you and your stupid boyfriend. You can go to hell." She told her off, looking over to her brother. "You're free to drown with them if you want to." Reagan said.

She took a final look at the three of them, before walking away, ignoring whatever comments came back to her. She couldn't hear them now. Reagan couldn't help but smile as she looked down at her watch. She had only been at the convenience store for twelve minutes.


	9. Hurry

**A/N: Ahh! I'm nearing the end of this story and I'm going to be so sad to bid it (a temporary) farewell until the second season comes out on Netflix. Now, I will be doing a couple of one-shot flashbacks for this fic, with one idea set in stone, and if you guys want more I can do a poll with maybe like four and pick the top two.**

 **ALSO, if you are a follower of me in general (like my other stories), I want to post a new story as soon as I'm done this one but it will only be one new story and it will be a continuation of some plot bunnies I have on my tumblr (thegirlinchair) (should be under the tag 'plot bunnies'). Please comment below if you guys think I should do a poll to decide which story I should do after this one if you're interested, or if I should just screw it and pick whatever I want.**

 **ANYWAYS, enjoy this beautiful chapter. I love you all. Besos.**

* * *

It wasn't long before Reagan showed up at the station. She felt oddly revitalized despite the fact she recently got out of the hospital. She guessed it was because she had finally built herself enough courage to accept herself, and it was liberating. Reagan even had a glowing smile on her face.

That was until she saw his.

She had almost forgotten what had gone down between him and her brother. Reagan's heart practically broke at the sight of her brother's wounds. It hurt her even more to think that Jonathan Byers, a boy she's grown to care so much about, was the found who did that to him. She was almost angry, for a split second, until she noticed the ice wrapped in a dishcloth. He held it gently to his hands, not putting too much weight in it, as if any more would hurt too much. Her eyes softened as she stood in front of the desk, waiting for either him or Nancy to notice her presence.

"Oh my God– Reagan." Nancy breathed out, rushing out of her seat and pulling the blonde into a tight hug that almost took the breath out of her. Reagan chuckled breathlessly as the girl let go of her. Nancy quickly noticed what she had did, holding onto Reagan's shoulders. "Sorry." The brunette apologized, putting on a sheepish half smile. "It's okay." Reagan assured, looking over Nancy's shoulder at Jonathan, who was sitting there quietly, barely saying a word. It didn't help seeing him in handcuffs.

Reagan moved past Nancy, standing over the desk as she stared at him. She couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions, unsure of what to say to him. Jonathan was the one who broke the tension, meeting her eyes. "Are you mad?" He asked quietly, preparing himself for a bad reaction. "Mad? Is that how you think I feel after what you did?" Reagan questioned, raising her brows as her voice raised to a harsh tone. "You punched my brother in the face! How do you think I feel about you?!" She exclaimed at him, losing her temper. Reagan's face dropped when she realized her words had a tiny slip up. She meant to say how she felt, not how she felt about him.

Her face grew red, and Jonathan presumed out of anger, not the embarrassment Reagan was actually feeling. She turned her back on him, looking over to Nancy. She wasn't sure how much more she could handle of this. It was too many emotions all at once. "I–" Reagan began, eager to go back outside and get some fresh air. She moved to leave but was stopped by the entrance of Joyce and Hopper.

"Hey..." Joyce noticed Reagan immediately, taking in the sight of the blonde. She looked past Reagan to notice her son sitting in handcuffs. "Jonathan?" Joyce questioned, her voice instantly laced with concern. "Jesus. What– what happened?" She asked, looking at the bruises that coated her eldest son. Callahan looked over at the woman,"Ma'am..." The officer started. "I'm fine." Jonathan insisted weakly as he looked down at his swollen knuckles.

Joyce looked at Callahan with a fire in her eyes. "Why is he wearing handcuffs?" She demanded. "Well, your boy assaulted a police officer. That's why." Callahan tried to explain to her. "Take them off." Joyce commanded. "I am afraid I cannot do that." He said. "Take them off!" She yelled, losing her patient. "You heard her. Take 'em off." Hopper instructed the officer.

"Chief, I get everyone's emotional here, but there's something you need to see." Powell told him.

Nancy, Jonathan, and Reagan suddenly shared a concern look as Hopper headed outside with Powell and Callahan. They knew what was in the trunk of Jonathan's car that wouldn't look too good to police officials. Joyce waited with arms crossed by her son's side as Hopper headed outside with the others. Her eyes wandered over to Reagan and picked up on the girl's state.

Despite being back on her feet again, Reagan was a little sweaty and pale from the whole day. Some asthma attacks she had in the past were anxiety induced and she was trying her hardest not to let her emotions get the best of her crappy capability of breathing. Joyce recognized the signs, knowing Reagan had given Will quite a scare when she decided to ride and bike with him after he begged her a hundred times. Neither of them realized it would turn out so bad, and Will had to bike by himself all the way home just to get Joyce to call an ambulance for Reagan.

"Are you okay?" She asked her. Reagan looked over at Joyce, wondering if she should tell the woman the truth. "I..." The teenaged girl began, catching a glimpse of Nancy shaking her head. Jonathan knew better however, knowing that Reagan would never lie to his mother. "I just got back from the hospital." Reagan shrugged her shoulders casually, trying to play it off.

"Jesus, Reagan, really? Why are you here? Why aren't you there? How bad was the attack exactly? Because you shouldn't even be moving around if–" Joyce was cut off by the arrival of Hopper, who carried a box with him. The chief pursed his lips together, eying the teenagers as he dumped the box down on the table. Joyce uncrossed her arms and leaned over, seeing the contents inside.

She made a confused face. "What is this?" Joyce questioned as she eyed the bear trap inside. "Why don't you ask your son? We found it in his car." Hopper explained. "What?" Joyce asked, her jaw dropping as she looked over at Jonathan. "Why are you going through my car?" Jonathan snapped at the chief. Hopper leaned over, staring the boy down. "Is that really the question you should be asking right now?" He asked him.

Hopper looked at Jonathan, leaning back. "I wanna see you in my office." He informed. "You won't believe me." Jonathan suddenly insisted. "Why don't you give me a try?" Hopper challenged him, meeting his eyes. Jonathan looked over to Reagan and Nancy, receiving a slight nod from the two of them. The chief was a man you could trust in Hawkins, no matter the rough edges the man carried.

* * *

Explaining a monster in an alternate dimension wasn't a typical saturday afternoon for these teenagers. But after handing the photo to Joyce and Hopper, all three were thinking 'that wasn't so bad'. It could've gone much worse if it had been anyone else than Joyce and Hopper, like Powell and Callahan for example.

Joyce had a little trouble digesting it all, even if the monster was something she had seen before. Jonathan nervously bit his nails as Hopper took the photograph into his hands. "You say blood draws this thing?" The chief questioned, looking over Nancy who had explained it before. "We don't know." Jonathan confessed. "It's just a theory." Nancy shook her head lightly. "A strong one." Reagan added, remaining the optimistic of the three.

While Hopper studied the photo, Joyce looked over at her son. "Jonathan, can I speak to you outside?" She asked him. Jonathan could tell by the tone of her voice that his mother was disappointed in him. He couldn't help thinking that he should have told her sooner, but even with that thought he still couldn't imagine having told her before.

Nancy and Reagan shared a concern stare as Jonathan and his mother filed out of the chief's office. Joyce waited outside for her son and watched as Jonathan closed the door to the office behind him. Hopper still looked at the photo, not even glancing over at the two teenaged girls. "Neither of you even think of eavesdropping." He reminded them, clearing his throat and making the two girls frown in disappointment.

"I'm sorry, Mom." Jonathan said softly, originally avoiding her gaze. "What, you're sorry? You're... you're sorry?" She asked, looking at him and shaking her head. "That is not good enough, Jonathan." Joyce told him. "I know." Jonathan mumbled, hanging his head a little in shame. "That's not even close. That's not even in the... in the ballpark." She rushed out at him.

He looked at her with soft eyes. "I wanted to tell you, I just–" "What if this thing took you, too?" Joyce asked, her voice breaking as she cut him off. "You risked your life... and Nancy's, and Reagan's– after all she's done for us." She reminded him as she looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I thought I could save Will... I still do." Jonathan stammered out. "This is not yours to fix alone." Joyce told him. "You act like you're all alone out there in the world, but you're not. You're not alone."

Jonathan averted his gaze,"I know." He mumbled. "God damn it, Jonathan." Joyce pushed him, nearly crying because he had made her worry so much. "I know." He repeated, looking over at his mother. "Damn it." She whispered, pulling him into a tight hug.

The happy moment only lasted a second. "I want an apology!" A woman screamed in the distance. "An apology for what, exactly?" Callahan asked the woman. The door of the chief's office opened up and Hopper emerged. "Stay here." He told Joyce and Jonathan briefly, walking over to deal with the situation.

Reagan stepped out of the office as well, looking over at Joyce and Jonathan. "Is everything okay?" She asked the two. Joyce looked at the girl with soft eyes, rubbing her son's arm gently. "Yeah." Joyce said, moving back into the chief's office. Jonathan noticed how his mother closed the door behind her and he furrowed his brows, noticing him and Reagan were now relatively alone int he hall.

She looked at him gently, managing a small smile to lift spirits. Reagan had felt bad about yelling at him earlier. She wasn't entirely angry with him, knowing his actions only happened because Steve had pushed him until he snapped. "Jon..." She began, her voice a whisper. "I'm sorry. For earlier." Reagan finished. Jonathan shook his head at her,"Don't apologize." He told her. "As long as you don't hate me." He said, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"I could never hate you, Jonathan Byers." Reagan assured him with a small smirk as she looked at him. Jonathan smiled a little, letting out a soft chuckle. "I could never hate you too, Reagan Harrington." He admitted, taking a step towards her.

They seemed in a good place, until the return of the chief pushed them apart. Hopper stared at the two before rolling his eyes. He leaned over between them, opening the door to his office. "Let's go." He told Nancy and Joyce, noticing the two had been eavesdropping on the young couple. But thankfully to Jonathan and Reagan, they were oblivious to it.

* * *

Hopper stopped only a block down from Nancy's house. He looked through a pair of binoculars, studying the movement of the men from the laboratory. "I have to go home." Nancy insisted. "No, you can't." Hopper told her simply. "My mom... my dad are there." Nancy argued fiercely, caring too much about them just to leave them behind. "They're gonna be okay." Hopper said calmly, lowering the binoculars.

Nancy frowned and pushed past the man. "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey." Hopper rushed out, grabbing onto the young girl before she could get any further. "Let go. Let go!" She demanded, glaring up at him. While he admired her spunk, this was no time for theatrics. "Hey! Listen to me. Listen to me." He stated firmly. "The last thing in the world we need is them knowing you're mixed up in all this."

"Mike is over there–" "They haven't found him." He told her. "Not yet, at least." He said, gesturing to the helicopter in the sky. Hopper retained his grip on her, dragging her back to the car. "For Mike?!" She exclaimed as Hopper told her to get into the car. He slammed the door behind her as she filed in next to Reagan. The blonde did not like being sandwiched in the middle but held back a complaint due to the fear of the chief yelling at her.

The chief turned back at the teenagers as he got back into the driver's seat. "Look, we need to find them before they do." He told them. "Do you have any idea where he might have gone?" Hopper asked Nancy. "No, I don't." Nancy said simply. "I need you to think." He instructed her. Nancy felt a little embarrassed when she realized she barely knew her own little brother. "I don't know. We haven't talked a lot. I mean, lately..." She sighed.

"Is there any place that your– your parents don't know about that he might go?" Joyce questioned. Nancy struggled,"I don't know." She stuttered out. Reagan blinked in realization,"I might." She said, making all heads in the car turn to her. It figured that the babysitter would know. Reagan had babysat all boys in the friend group, even Mike at one time when Karen asked her to look after him and Holly when both her and Nancy were out on a date.

Hopper looked at her, barely acknowledging Reagan beforehand. "What?" He asked her. "I mean... I don't know where he is– but I know how to ask him." She admitted, reminding Joyce and Jonathan of something important that Will regarded highly. It was his constant communication source with his friends after all.

* * *

It wasn't a long drive to the Byers household, especially with the urgency the chief felt behind the wheel. He pulled to a stop right out front and everyone piled out of the car. Jonathan and Reagan were the first to rush inside the house, knowing they spent enough time in Will's room to might know where it was. Nancy came in after them, pausing to stand in awe at the chaos the Byers household had fallen into over the last week.

"Whoa." She couldn't help but say, looking at the mess and tangle of Christmas lights around. She realized the rest of the group had kept on without her and she ran to catch up. Jonathan rummaged around some of Will's drawers, but Joyce was the one who reached underneath the bed. "I got it!" The woman said, bringing out the small radio. She looked over at Nancy, offering the radio to her. "He's your brother." Joyce said simply.

Nancy took it gently, a little nervous that Mike wouldn't actually reply to her. She hadn't been the best older sister lately. She took a seat on the bed, Joyce and Reagan taking a seat by either side of her. It felt nice to have them there, mostly because she could tell they were both supporting her. Nancy looked down at the radio,"Mike, are you there? Mike?" She tried. No response came.

"Mike, it's me, Nancy." She clarified, feeling a little dumb. She supposed he knew what she sounded like. "Mike, are you there? Answer." Nancy tried again, sighing a little when he wasn't answering. "Mike, we need you to answer." She demanded, her voice a little more firm. "This is an emergency, Mike. Do you copy?" Nancy asked, hearing only static once more. "Mike, do you copy?" She asked again. Nancy frowned,"I need you to answer." She begged him. "We need to know that you're there, Mike–"

Hopper took the radio away from her,"Listen, kid, this is the chief. If you're there, pick up. We know you're in trouble and we know about the girl." He explained. "We can protect you, we can help you, but you gotta pick up. Are you there? Do you copy? Over." Hopper sighed at the silence, placing the radio down. "Anybody got any other ideas?" He asked the group.

" _Yeah, I copy. It's Mike. I'm here. We're here._ "

* * *

The sun had already gone down by the time the chief arrived with the kids. They all rushed outside as the sound of the car pulling into the driveway. Nancy's eyes softened at the sight of her brother. "Mike. Oh my God, Mike!" She exclaimed, running to the boy and pulling him into a tight embrace that took him by complete surprise. "I was so worried about you." Nancy explained as she pulled away from him.

Mike was in shock, blinking his eyes at his older sister. He had no idea she cared that much about him. "Yeah, uh... me, too." He responded awkwardly. Nancy looked over to the girl in the group, recognizing something. "Is that my dress?" She questioned.

"Let's get inside." Hopper instructed everyone, and no one questioned him as they began to enter the Byers household. Nancy looked at her brother,"Why is she wearing my dress?" She asked him quietly. "She didn't have any clothes." Mike defended. Dustin and Lucas stuck close with Eleven, who became a little nervous after Nancy had whisked Mike away. Dustin noticed Will's mom and brother, along with his babysitter as well. He turned back to the chief. "They're a part of this too?" He questioned.

" _Inside_." The chief repeated, and no one spoke again until they were all inside. Hopper took a look at the boys and the girl,"Someone care to explain exactly what's going on here?" He asked them. Mike, Dustin, and Lucas all shared a look. Mike took a hesitant step forward,"I–I think I can." Mike mentioned nervously as he looked at the chief. "Can I have a piece of paper and something to write with?"

Reagan took the initiative, very familiar with where Will kept all of his drawing supplies. "I'll get it." The blonde told him, stepping out before returning with a piece of lined paper and a pen pen. Reagan handed the items over to Mike. He paused, looking around at everyone. "You all might want to take a seat for this." He said carefully.

Hopper took a look at Mike,"You might want to make this quick, kid. Will's not the only one that's missing. Your sister's friend, Barbara, is too." The man explained. "Anything else we should know?" Lucas piped in. Hopper thought about it for a moment, before bringing out the photograph of the monster he had kept. "Where ever they are... this is there with them." Hopper finished.

"Whoa." Dustin said, leaning over with Lucas to get a look at the thing. Mike stared at the picture,"Demogorgon." He whispered to himself, looking over at Eleven. Mike took a seat next to her, placing the paper down on the table and popping the cap off the pen. "Mr. Clarke explained to us a theory that would explain everything. Let me just..." Mike trailed off as he worked on the drawing, knowing he was being watched by everyone there. He finally popped the cap back on the pen, holding up the piece of paper with the drawing. "Okay, so, in this example, we're the acrobat." Mike explained,"Will and Barbara, and that monster, they're this flea."

Mike gestured to the paper,"And this is the Upside Down, where Will is hiding." He informed. He looked up at everyone,"Mr. Clarke said the only way to get there is through a rip of time and space." Mike said, putting down the paper. "A gate." Dustin clarified. "That we tracked to Hawkins Lab." Lucas said. "With our compasses." Dustin added. Joyce looked at the boy, a little confused. "Okay, so the gate has a really strong electromagnetic field, and that can change the directions of a compass needle." He explained.

"Is this gate underground?" Hopper had to ask. Eleven looked at the man,"Yes." She replied quietly. "Near a large water tank?" He asked her. "Yes." She answered him. Dustin blinked,"How did you know all of that?" The boy stuttered out. "He's seen it." Mike realized, looking down at the paper. Joyce leaned forward,"Is there any way that you could... that you could reach Will? That you could talk to him in this–" "The Upside Down." Eleven cut Joyce off.

The woman nodded her head,"Down. Yeah." She mumbled, looking at the girl. Eleven nodded her head back at her. "And my friend Barbara? Can you find her too?" Nancy asked her. Eleven looked over at Nancy before nodding her head as well.

Mike pulled out his radio, looking to Eleven. "Come on." He said, getting up and leading her to the kitchen where he set the radio down on the table. Nancy followed after Eleven and her brother, and the rest shortly followed behind. "I have a picture of Barbara if it helps." Nancy said nervously, setting down next to the girl as Eleven took a seat. Jonathan looked at the radio before looking to Mike,"What is she going to do?" He asked him. Mike shushed him,"Everybody just stay quiet." He instructed, turning on the radio.

Eleven shut her eyes as static was heard around the table. Jonathan noticed the concern look on his mother's face and immediately reached for her hand. He gave her a tight squeeze, which allowed Joyce to relax for a moment and take a breath before looking back over to Eleven. The lights began to flicker as the static grew fainter. Finally, Eleven opened her eyes, looking like she was going to cry.

She knew she had failed the people that were counting on her. Eleven met Joyce's eyes,"I'm sorry." She whispered. "What? What's wrong? What happened?" Joyce stammered out in confusion. Eleven frowned,"I can't find them." She choked out, looking around the table as they reacted to the news. She could see the hurt in Nancy's face, and watched as Jonathan tried to calm down his mother after she started to panic. Eleven took a look at Mike before standing up from the table.

"Is there a bathroom?" She asked quietly. Reagan looked at the girl, feeling her pain after she failed to find them through the radio. "I'll take you." She offered her hand to Eleven, and Eleven took it gently. The blonde led her to the bathroom, letting go of the young girl's hand in order to open the door. "Here you go." Reagan said quietly, leaning against the door frame. Eleven stared up at her,"How do you know Will?" She couldn't help but wonder.

"I'm his babysitter." Reagan explained simply. "Baby... sitter?" Eleven asked out loud, growing confused as those two concepts didn't exactly sound harmless when put together. Reagan realized where the girl's conclusions went to and laughed. "No, no– sweetie, not like that." She clarified, looking at the girl. "A babysitter is... someone who takes care of children when their mother or father isn't around. Their job is to keep them safe. Make sure nothing bad happens to them." Reagan said.

The young girl met her eyes,"You did all that for Will?" Eleven questioned, her voice breaking. Reagan smiled, tears forming in her eyes as she reached over and gently rubbed the girl's shoulder. "I still do." Reagan replied,"Or at least... I try to. I'm not sure I did a very good job considering." She finished. Eleven looked at her gently,"It's not your fault." She told her. Reagan shrugged her shoulders back at the girl. "It is though..." Reagan trailed off.

She pursed her lips together as she tried to hold back her tears. "I– I could've been with him. I could've picked him up and taken him home... if I did– he wouldn't be alone right now in that place. He might not even be there because– I would've protected him. That's my job. When his mother or brother can't... it's my job to take care of him and I didn't." Reagan said.

Eleven studied her, understanding the guilt. She remembered how it felt when Mike showed her enough compassion for her to stop blaming herself for opening the gate between the two worlds. Eleven reached and grabbed Reagan's forearm,"Will's... lucky. To have you." She told her softly, managing a smile. Reagan surprised her by pulling her into a hug. "Thank you." Reagan said as she began crying as she held the girl.

Reagan pulled away from the hug, moving from the door. She gestured a little awkwardly. Eleven nodded her head,"Right." The girl mumbled, walking inside and closing the door behind her. Reagan watched as she closed the door, wiping some tears from her eyes. She looked down the hall to notice Jonathan was standing only a couple of feet away from her.

"How long have you been standing there?" She asked him. Jonathan looked at her, his eyes a little glassy as well,"Long enough to tell you that it's not your fault. I– I was dumb. I should've been there as well. I shouldn't have told you not to go get him and stay with him. I–" "Hey..." Reagan said softly, walking over to him. "You know, she's right. Will's... a very lucky kid. He has all these people who love and care about him. We're not gonna give up until we find him." She reminded him, taking his hand.

Jonathan looked down at his hand in hers before looking back up at Reagan and meeting her eyes. He nodded his head lightly,"Yeah." He said. Jonathan wanted to say something to her, thinking about what Nancy had told him to do. But it wasn't the right time. Not when they were worried about Will. He decided to lead her back to the group instead. "Come on." He whispered, letting go of her hand when they were back in the kitchen.

The boys were explaining Eleven's powers to Nancy and Joyce when they got back. Jonathan settled himself back by his mother's side, looking to the three, while Reagan went and stood behind Nancy. "Whenever she uses her powers, she gets weak." Mike explained. "The more energy she uses, the more tired she gets." Dustin said. "Like, she flipped the van earlier." Lucas mentioned, which made Dustin smile, prompting him to say,"It was awesome."

"But she's drained." Mike said, a little disappointed. "Like a bad battery." Dustin added. Joyce looked at the boys,"Well... how do we make her better?" Joyce stuttered out. "We don't. We just have to wait and try again." Mike said simply. Nancy furrowed her brows,"Well, how long?" She demanded, only because of the urgency. "I don't know." He admitted.

"The bath." Eleven cut them all off from saying anything further. "What?" Joyce turned around to look at the girl. "I can find them... in the bath." She repeated, looking to all of them. "What's she talking about?" Hopper questioned, looking to Mike for an answer. The boy shook his head,"I– I don't know." He replied, shaking his head. Dustin looked at Eleven for a moment,"I think I do." The boy said.

It wasn't long before Dustin had the phone in his hands. It was something he had read about once in a book that he had borrowed from the library for a science project. He dialed the number, a little nervous as everyone looked at him expectingly. " _Hello?_ " The voice on the other end came. "Mr. Clarke? It's Dustin." The boy mentioned. " _Dustin? Is everything okay?_ " Mr. Clarke asked him.

"Yeah, yeah." Dustin lied,"I just, I... I have a science question." He paused as the teacher began talking, but cut him off. "Do you know anything about sensory deprivation tanks? Specifically how to build one?" Dustin questioned. "Sensory deprivation? What's this for?" Mr. Clarke asked, confused.

Dustin panicked before replying,"Fun."

The teacher began shutting him down and Dustin frowned,"You always say we should never stop being curious. To always open any curiosity door we find. Why are you keeping this curiosity door locked?" Dustin demanded, breaking the man on the other line. He then moved towards the table, looking for anything to write with. Lucas tossed him a pencil as Mike found a pad of paper for him. Dustin began jotting down everything Mr. Clarke was telling him.

"Uh huh." Dustin mumbled as he worked on the paper. "Uh huh. How much? Uh huh." He continued. He was finishing up his notes as Mr. Clarke urged that he had to end the call. "Yep, alright." Dustin said. "Yeah, we'll be careful." He told him. "Definitely. Alright, Mr. Clarke. Yeah, I'll see you on Monday. I'll see you on Monday, Mr. Clarke." He said. "Bye." Dustin clicked off the phone before looking at Joyce.

"Do you still have that kiddie pool we bobbed for apples in?" He questioned. Joyce furrowed her brows, looking to Jonathan. "I think so. Yeah." She said as Jonathan nodded his head. "Good, then we just need salt. Lots of it." Dustin said. Hopper raised his brows,"How much is lots?" He asked. Dustin looked back down at the paper, tapping it with the pencil. "1500 pounds." He mentioned.

"Well, where are you gonna get that much salt?" Nancy questioned. Hopper looked over at her. "I have an idea." He said.

* * *

Both cars pulled into the school's parking lot. The kids had all ridden in Hopper's car while Nancy, Reagan and Joyce rode in Jonathan's car. They all piled out, having talked about their jobs before heading to the school. Reagan followed Joyce and Eleven into the school while everyone went off. "How are we going to keep it dark for her?" Joyce wondered out loud before looking to Reagan. "We could shut out the lights in the gym or–" Reagan paused before stopping outside a classroom.

"I have an idea." The girl said, opening the door and leading the two others inside. "Take a seat, sweetie." Joyce instructed the girl and Eleven sat down. Joyce followed Reagan as she went to one of the cupboards, opening one of them. She pulled out a roll of duct tape and some goggles. Reagan looked up at Joyce, holding the items up. "That'll do." Joyce nodded her head.

Reagan began covering up the goggles with duct, and Joyce looked back at Eleven. She could tell that the girl was nervous. She went over, taking a seat across from her. Joyce sighed as she looked at her,"You're a very brave girl. You know that, don't you?" She asked Eleven.

"Everything you're doing for my boy... for Will... for my family. Thank you." She told her sincerely, taking the girl's hands in hers. "Listen. I am gonna be there with you the whole time. Reagan too. And if it ever gets too scary... in that place, you just let me know, okay?" She said. Eleven met her eyes,"Yes." She agreed.

"Done." Reagan mumbled, looking over to the two of them. Joyce looked back to Eleven,"Ready?" She asked the girl. Eleven looked at the woman,"Ready." She replied. Reagan moved over and placed the goggles down next to Joyce,"I'll go see in they're ready for us." She told them, leaving the science classroom.

Eleven waited nervously for Reagan to return. Joyce tried taking her hands away from the girl before Eleven just grabbed them right back. She was still holding on when Reagan returned to the classroom. She entered, nodding her head to Joyce. "Come on." Joyce instructed Eleven, picking up the goggles and leading the girl over to Reagan.

She met Eleven with an encouraging smile. "You're gonna do just fine." Reagan tried to assure her, placing a hand on her back. The walk to the gym was short but for Eleven it was painfully long. However, once everyone else had her eyes on her, the girl managed to put on a brave face. Especially for Mike, who she knew was counting on her more than ever.

Joyce gripped onto the goggles nervously as Eleven began taking off her shoes and socks, followed by her watch. Joyce then handed her the goggles, watching as Eleven slipped them over her head. Eleven let out a sigh as Joyce and Reagan held her into the pool. The group watched as the moment she settled in, the lights went out.

They all watched Eleven, completely depending on this working.

"Barbara?" Eleven muttered, alerting those in the group to who she had already found. Nancy hanged onto the girl's every word even though she wasn't saying anything. Eleven started breathing heavily. "What's going on?" She asked. "I don't know." Mike told her. "Is Barb okay? Is she okay?" Nancy suddenly rushed out, looking to the girl floating in the water. "Gone... gone... gone..." Eleven began whispering, until they turned into screams. Joyce immediately reached out for her, trying to assure the girl that it was okay.

Nancy held back tears as Reagan rubbed her back. Joyce managed to calm down Eleven while Nancy was in a state of shock. Jonathan put his hand on her shoulder as well, but Nancy shrugged both him and Reagan off. She shook her head, rather not wanting to be touched in that moment. Nancy reached up and covered her mouth as she looked back at Eleven.

The moment passed when Eleven managed to mumble,"Castle Byers."

"Will?" Eleven asked, which made Joyce gasp in relief. "You tell him... tell him I'm coming." Joyce instructed her.

Everyone froze as static came over the radio. " _Hurry_."

It was Will's voice.

"Okay. Listen, you tell him to... to stay where he is." Joyce stuttered out, in awe of hearing her son's voice after time apart. It felt like he had been gone for years, even though it had only been a week. "We're coming." She continued,"We're coming, okay? We're coming, honey." Joyce rushed out. Eleven was suddenly heard whimpering over the radio, and the girl flew to rip the goggles off of her head. She began crying as Joyce pulled her into a tight embrace. She whispered comforting things into the girl's ears into she calmed down.

* * *

Reagan wrapped Eleven in a towel. She was still clearly shaken up by the experience, and while Joyce had managed to calm her down, Eleven was still rattled. "Come on." Mike said, taking her hand and brining her to sit down on the bleachers. Reagan watched as the rest of the boys settled around her, concerned for their friend.

She turned around in time to see Nancy walk out of the gym. "Nance!" Reagan called, looking to Jonathan before running out after the girl. "Nancy!" She called, running after the girl. Reagan had to pause when she started coughing and settled for walking after her rather than risk another asthma attack. She found Nancy sitting on the floor.

"Leave me alone." Nancy mumbled, but Reagan just shook her head. "No." The girl said firmly, moving besides Nancy and sitting down next to her, leaning against the wall. Nancy barely spoke a word, or even looked at her. The brunette turned her head after a few minutes of silence, looking at Reagan. "You're... you're not gonna replace her." Nancy said, more to herself than to Reagan.

"What?" Reagan gave her a confused look. Nancy frowned as she tucked her knees closer to herself. "Barbara." She clarified, looking down. Reagan frowned at the girl and touched her shoulder gently,"Nancy, no one can ever replace her. She's–" She paused at the use of present tense. But Reagan didn't want to use past tense, like the girl was already gone. "Your best friend." Reagan finally said. "A good friend. A really good friend... I could tell. It always seemed like she cared about you a lot."

Nancy choked out a sob,"She did." The girl whispered and Reagan wrapped an arm around her. "I don't like thinking she's... gone." Nancy admitted as she held back tears, biting down on her bottom lip. "I know." Reagan said,"And I'm sorry."

The girls sat in silence, watching as Joyce, Hopper and Jonathan headed outside. They knew they were going to look for Will. They didn't expect for Jonathan to walk back in however, and the boy took a look at them. He said nothing as he walked over and sat down next to Reagan. She moved her arm away from Nancy, who had calmed down, and looked to Jonathan. The three teenagers said nothing until Nancy broke the silence.

"We have to go back to the station." She informed them. "What?" Jonathan asked, looking over to her. "Your mom and Hopper are just walking in there like bait. That thing... is still in there. And we can't just sit here and let it get them too." She said. "We can't." Nancy added firmly. Jonathan was the first to figure out what she was talking about. "You still wanna try it out?" He asked her.

Nancy looked over at them,"I wanna finish what we started. I want to kill it."


	10. This is Crazy

"Are you sure we shouldn't have told them where we were going?" Reagan wondered, looking over at Jonathan who was driving the car. The boy shook his head once more and the blonde turned to the backseat, wondering if Nancy felt the same way about it. Nancy just gave her a stern look, pursing her lips together. "I'm sure." The brunette piped in confidently as she leaned back against the seat. "I'm not risking Mike or any of his friends... it's too dangerous for them." She added.

Reagan frowned as she settled back into the front seat, staring out the passenger window. She hadn't meant to speak out loud, but her thoughts slipped out. "It's too dangerous for us." Reagan whispered quietly, but both Jonathan and Nancy were able to catch it. They sent her a worried look, knowing she was the weakest of the group both mentally and physically. Reagan was soft in almost any way, which made the two a little guilty for dragging her into this position she was clearly scared of.

Jonathan reached over, taking the blonde's hand. "It's okay to be afraid, Reagan. Nancy and I are too." He spoke gently, squeezing her hand which seemed to comfort Reagan. Jonathan noticed out of the corner of his eye that Nancy was giving him a certain look. He rolled his eyes at the brunette, knowing this wasn't the time to say anything. They pulled up in front of his house, piling out of the car as soon as Jonathan pulled the keys out of the ignition.

They had a plan and they were going to stick to it, especially after they broke into the station to retrieve the weapons Hopper had taken from them.

None of them said a word during the set up. The teenagers had spent enough time planning each part of the attack on the monster. The first thing they settled on doing was placing all the bulbs back on the lights after Jonathan insisted to both Nancy and Reagan that was something they needed to do.

The gasoline was poured in the right spot, and Jonathan pocketed his lighter. Nancy loaded the gun and Reagan found Will's old yo-yo. Jonathan finished hammering nails into the baseball bat and finally all that was left was the trap. The three were all extremely careful when setting up the bear trap, knowing that a wrong move could seriously injure them.

A sigh of relief came from Jonathan when the trap was finally set. The three teenagers looked to each other carefully, nodding their head. Everything was in place, which meant there was only one thing left for them to do. Reagan retrieved the knives, and the three made their way to the living room.

"Remember–" Jonathan began. "Straight into Will's room and–" Nancy continued. "Don't step on the trap." Reagan muttered nervously. "Wait for the yo-yo to move." Nancy added. "Then..." Jonathan trailed off, lifting his lighter and flipping it open to a small flame was produced. The three eyed the small flame before Jonathan closed the lighter. They all shared a nod.

Jonathan pocketed his lighter,"Alright." He said, looking at the girls,"You ready?" He asked them. "Ready." Nancy nodded, looking to Reagan. "Ready." The girl responded, and all of them lifted their hands. "On three." Jonathan began, looking down at his hand with the blade. "One... two..."

Nancy was the first one to notice Reagan's hand was shaking. Her own was unsteady but no where near as wobbly as Reagan's hand was in that moment. Jonathan quickly caught sight of it and he looked at Nancy. "You guys don't have to do this." He paused. Nancy tensed up,"Jonathan, stop talking." She insisted, knowing it would only make her and Reagan more nervous. "I'm just saying, neither of you have to–" "Three!" Reagan exclaimed, prompting them all to slice the palms of their hands.

"Mother..." Nancy bit down on her bottom lip, looking down at the cut in her hand. She wanted to immediately stop the bleeding but knew they had to bleed out a little in order to lure the monster out of the Upside Down. Reagan struggled with the pain, blinking back tears as she squeezed her hand into a fist. "Reagan–" Jonathan began, knowing she didn't have to do that.

She watched as blood dripped down from her hand before looking over to Jonathan. "I'm fine." Reagan insisted, looking to Nancy. After a few minutes, Reagan moved to the first aid kit they had taken out. Reagan wrapped her hand quickly in the gauze, making it tight before securing it with medical tape. "Nancy." The blonde asked, having the other girl move towards her.

Reagan wrapped the other girl's hand, applying pressure to the wound before securing the gauze with tap. Nancy rubbed her hand gently, still feeling the pain. She looked over to Jonathan as he moved over. Reagan sat on the couch, unwrapping more of the rolled gauze. She looked up at Jonathan as he came over to sit down next to her.

As Reagan wrapped his hand, Nancy flinched at the sound of a faint creak. "Did you hear that?" She asked worriedly, looking back to the others. "It's just the wind." Jonathan insisted, but Nancy was still a little worried. "Don't worry. My mom... she said the lights speak when it comes." He told the two. "Speak?" Nancy asked.

"Blink." Jonathan clarified. "Think of them as... alarms." He said, oping that would make Nancy feel better. She nodded her head, looking away from the two at the spot in the floor where the three of them bled. Jonathan looked back at Reagan who was almost finished wrapping his hand. "Is that too tight?" She asked him gently, looking up and meeting his eyes.

He shook his head lightly,"No... thanks." He told her, studying her features with a soft gaze. Reagan applied a strip of medical tap down on the gauze, her fingertips brushing against his as she moved her hand away. However, Jonathan decided to surprise her back taken her wrapped hand into his wrapped hand. "Reagan–" Jonathan rushed out, swallowing a lump in his throat. He had probably been holding this back for too long. "Yeah?" Reagan asked him.

Just as he began to lean in, banging on the door made everyone in the house jump.

"Jonathan?!" Steve called from the other side of the door, making the three confused. After everything that had happened, Steve was probably the last person they were expecting. "Are you there, man? It's... it's Steve!" The boy clarified, just in the case his twin sister, his girlfriend, or the guy who beat him up didn't recognize his voice.

"Listen, I just want to talk." Steve continued banging on the door. Nancy looked at the two before moving towards the door. She opened it partially for her boyfriend, staring at Steve. "Steve, listen to me." She began. "Hey, Nancy, what–" Steve said, confused at the sight of her. "You need to leave." Nancy told him. "I'm not trying to start anything, okay?" Steve clarified.

Nancy frowned,"I don't care about that. You need to leave." While it did make her feel better that Steve had come to apologize for his actions, she knew she couldn't risk him being quite up in this mess. She already had her friends to worry about. Nancy couldn't handle if a boy she really cared about was added to the mix.

Steve shook his head,"No, no, no. Listen, I– I– I messed up, okay? I messed... I messed up. Okay? Really... please." He stammered out, defeated. Reagan frowned at the sound of his voice, knowing she could feel his guilt and pain over the matter. "I just want to make things right." Steve insisted, which tugged on Nancy's heart strings. She couldn't let him in, not in that moment. "Okay? Please... please..." He begged her.

He stopped when he noticed the wrapped wound on her hand. "Hey, what happened to your hand?" Steve questioned, clearly concerned for her. "Is that blood?" He reached out for her just as she pulled away from him. "Nothing... nothing. It was an accident." Nancy stuttered the lie, taken back by Steve's words to her. "What's going on?" Steve asked her.

"Nothing." She repeated. "Wait a sec– did he do this to you?" Steve hoped that wouldn't be the answer, but he couldn't stop looking at the blood seeping through the bandage. "No. No!" Nancy shot him down but Steve pushed the door away from her grasp despite her yelling at him. "Let me in." Steve demanded, pushing past her. He stumbled in, his eyes settling on the disarray of the Byers household. He eyed Jonathan and Reagan, before his eyes settled on the rest.

"What is... what the..." Steve struggled to make sense out of what he was seeing. Jonathan frowned and rushed forward,"You need to get out of here." He told him, pushing him back. "Whoa– what is all–" Steve tried to get out all of his thoughts but it was all too much. "Listen to me, I'm not asking you– I'm telling you, get out of here!" Jonathan yelled at him. "What is that smell?" Steve wondered out loud. "Is that... is that gasoline?" Steve asked, pushing Jonathan off of him.

Nancy raised the gun,"Steve... get out!" She exclaimed, pointing the gun at him. Jonathan immediately backed up, knowing Nancy didn't mess around with that thing. He grabbed Reagan's hand, pulling her behind him in case anything happened. He wouldn't be having her hurt. Steve looked at his girlfriend with wide eyes,"Wait– what?! What is going on?!" Steve yelled, looking between the three others.

She looked at him fiercely,"You have five seconds to get out of here." Nancy instructed, her grip firm on the firearm. "Okay, is this a joke? Stop! Put the gun down." Steve said, his hands out in front of him. "I'm doing this for you." Nancy said, a little bit of her emotions showing in her voice. She cared too much about him to let him get hurt by the monster. Steve tried to reason with her, just as the lights started flickering.

"Nancy." Jonathan began, noticing the flicker. "Nancy." He said again, more urgently as she held a gun to Steve. "Three– two–" Nancy began counting down as Steve yelled 'no' at her repeated as he held up his hands. "Nancy!" Reagan shouted, gaining the girl's attention. Nancy whipped her head over to look at Jonathan and Reagan. "The lights." Jonathan pointed out. "It's here." He continued, rushing for the baseball bat.

Her jaw dropped as she looked up to see the Christmas lights were all blinking. Reagan leaned forward, grabbing one of the knives. It wasn't much but it was better than having nothing. "Wait, what's here?" Steve asked the three. "Where is it?" Nancy cut him off, looking around. "Where is what? Whoa! Easy with that!" He said, looking to the weapons all three carried but him.

"Where is it?" Nancy yelled, her back brushing up against Jonathan and Reagan's. The three circled, looking around. "I don't know. I don't see it." Jonathan said as he whipped his head around the room. "Where is what?" Steve demanded, fed up with how the three were ignoring his questions. "Hello? Will someone please explain to me what the hell is going–"

The ceiling cracked, making a loud noise that caught the attention of all of the teenagers. The monster broke through the barrier and as soon as Nancy had her eyes on it, she fired out a few shots at the creature. There was no way she was letting that thing leave here alive. "Nance!" Reagan shouted at her, knowing that was not apart of the plan. She grabbed Nancy's arm and began to pull her out of there. "Go! Go! Go! Get out of here!" Jonathan instructed, letting Reagan and Nancy flee ahead of him. Steve stood in shock, prompting Jonathan to grab the other boy's hand and drag him along.

"Jump!" Jonathan called back, letting go of Steve and jumping over the bear trap. Steve panicked, shouting at the top of his lungs. "Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!" He screamed, jumping over the trap. He ran into Will's room and Reagan shut the door behind him. "Jesus! Jesus! What the hell was that? What the hell was that?!" Steve exclaimed, looking for some answers from the three.

Instead all he got was Jonathan, Nancy, and Reagan turning to face him and shouting at him,"Shut up!"

All of them panted as they faced the door. Nancy held the gun up, aimed right at the door while Jonathan stood ready with the baseball bat and lighter. Reagan gripped the knife, standing in front of her brother. The four watched the door as the lights in the house continued to flicker.

"What's it doing?" Nancy asked. Jonathan narrowed his eyes,"I don't know." He admitted. All of a sudden, the electricity jolted which steadied the lights. They no longer heard the sounds of the creature. "Do you hear anything?" Nancy wondered to the group. "No." Reagan muttered, prompting Jonathan to shut his lighter.

Jonathan took a step forward, opening the door. He took a hesitant step out of the hallway, on alert in case the creature was hiding. Nancy and Reagan followed him out of Will's room, along with Steve who stuck close with his sister. The hallway was now empty, showing almost no trace of the creature.

They didn't let their guard down until they turned the corner of the living room. Jonathan still held the bat up as he looked around the living room. Once the area proved to be monster clear, he loosened the grip on the bat. Steve started to panic as others looked around cautiously. He began muttering to himself until it turned into yelling.

"This is crazy. This is crazy. This is crazy. This is crazy! This is crazy! This is crazy!" He snapped, reaching for the phone on the wall. He began to dial 911 just as Reagan ripped the phone of his hand. "What are you– what are you doing? Are you insane?!" He screamed at his sister as she hung up the phone and tossed it on the ground. "It's going to come back!" Reagan argued at him, meeting his eyes.

Nancy joined her, looking at Steve. "You need to leave." She told him firmly. Steve stared at the two in shock. "Right. Now." Nancy commanded, ignoring the hurt look in his eyes. Steve looked over at his sister before shaking his head. This was too much for him to deal with.

Without another thought, his fight of flight took a hold of him and he ran out of the house. Steve was having enough trouble grasping what he had just seen, and knew it scared the hell out of him to stay in that house, even if Nancy and Reagan were both there and in danger. He stumbled to his car, fumbling with his keys. He finally got the door open when the lights began flickering again in the house. He paused, realizing he was being a coward.

The three back in the house stayed close together as soon as the lights started flickering again. "Where is it?" Nancy asked, looking around as the lights blinked on and off. "Come on... come on, you son of a bitch." Jonathan said angrily, his grip tight on the baseball bat as he looked around. This monster was going down for sure this time. "You see it?" He asked the two.

"No. Where–" Reagan paused, looking around. She could barely see anything with the lights flickering. "Where are you? Come on!" Jonathan shouted as he looked around. Nancy gripped onto her gun tightly as the lights went out completely. Growling was heard and the girl turned her head to realize where the monster was.

Reagan screamed as the monster stood before her. "Reagan!" Nancy shouted as Jonathan dove in front of the girl. "Jonathan!" Reagan screamed as the monster jumped onto the boy, making him drop the bat. The monster drooled on Jonathan, opening its mouth in a way that made Jonathan's eyes go wide. "Go to hell, you son of a bitch!" Nancy screamed as she shot at the monster, trying to make sure she wouldn't hit Jonathan.

That seemed to get the creature's attention. As soon as it was grazed by one of the bullets, it stood up and turned to Nancy and Reagan. Jonathan coughed as the weight was lifted off of him, allowing him to catch his breath. Nancy stared up with wide eyes at the creature, firing at it.

While she did manage to wound it, the gun started clicking after she ran out of ammo. Reagan went in front of Nancy, holding up the knife in her hand. It wasn't much but she wasn't going to let it get to Nancy. Steve grunted as he stood in front of the two, swinging the baseball bat that Jonathan had dropped. It seemed to do the right amount of damage to capture the monster's attention.

"Steve!" Reagan shouted, concerned for her brother who was now facing the monster. The monster snarled at Steve and the boy gripped the bat with wide eyes. He was probably crazy for doing this. As the monster came at him, Steve dodged the creature's attacks and hit it with the bat a few times. He twirled the bat before swinging it and hitting the monster back.

It growled once its foot came down in the trap. The trap snapped and caught the monster,"It's in the trap!" Steve yelled, moving back with the bat in his hands. "He's stuck!" He shouted. "Jonathan, now!" Nancy yelled, prompting Jonathan to rush forward and whip out his lighter. He flicked the cap off before throwing the lighter on the ground.

The gasoline caught fire, which quickly spread and started to consume the monster in flames. The monster screeched as the fire surrounded it and the teenagers watched as it struggled against the flames. The heat grew intense, prompting Jonathan to cover his eyes partially. He then ran and retrieved the fire extinguisher.

"Get back!" He yelled at the others, moving forward and grunting as he put out the flames. Smoke filled the hallway, making the others cough. Reagan coughed the hardest and Steve put his hand on her back, rubbing her gently. She continued coughing even after the smoke cleared. Nancy looked at the trap,"Where did it go?" She asked. "It has to be dead." Jonathan was convinced. "It has to be." He panted, looking to the scorched mark on the floor.

Reagan pulled out her inhaler, taking a puff. Her breather grew normal just as the lights began to flicker on. The teenagers at first started to panic, with Steve raising the baseball bat and stepping in front of his sister. However they calmed down a little after they saw the lights move around the house and back outside. Steve lowered the bat as Jonathan took a step forward.

"Mom..." He whispered, looking at the lights, almost completely sure it was her. "Is that you?" The boy asked. Jonathan wasn't sure if he would get a response, considering his mother must've been in the Upside Down. "Mom." He breathed out once again, almost swearing to himself he could hear his mother's voice.

Jonathan made his way outside of his house, with the other following close behind him. They watched as a streetlamp not too far from the house flickered. Nancy looked at it,"Where's it going?" She asked. "I don't think that's the monster." Jonathan admitted, looking at the streetlamp before looking to Reagan. She looked up at him, feeling the same odd feeling he was. Reagan knew he was right. She nodded her head up at him, which reassured him.

* * *

Reagan attempted to clean up after everything. It wasn't easy, and the others wondered why she bothered. She didn't go near the bear trap, not wanting to touch anything that remained of the creature. But she place the phone back on the wall, and went over to the floor with a wet rag. She attempted to get the blood off the floor but it had already dried up.

She sighed, knowing it was useless, but she kept at it until Jonathan came over and put his hand on her shoulder. "Come on." He whispered, offering his hand to her. She looked up at him before dropping the rag and taking his hand. Jonathan led her out of the house, pulling her out onto the porch into the quiet night. They two were silent as the night quietly surrounded them.

With the danger suddenly feeling gone, both of them were oddly relaxed and at peace. Reagan knew she would sure sleep better knowing that there was little chance the monster was still out there.

"Where's Nancy and Steve?" Reagan asked, looking over at him. Jonathan shrugged his shoulders, making his way over to the bench on the porch. He took a seat gesturing for Reagan to join him. Reagan moved over, taking a seat next to him. She stared out at the night,"They're probably... making out." She joked lightly, surprised at all she was able to make a joke after everything.

He cracked a small smile,"For my sake I hope they're just making up. I told Nancy she could use my room." Jonathan explained, turning his head over to Reagan. They shared a look before bursting out into laughter. It felt good to laugh again. Reagan smiled, leaning over and resting her head on his shoulder. She settled gently against him, so close that Jonathan wondered if she could hear his heart racing.

"Reagan..." Jonathan said softly, gaining her attention. She shifted her head, looking up at him. "Yes?" Reagan asked him, meeting his eyes. Jonathan looked down at her, knowing that he had hesitated many times before. But he tried to think of every moment he had with her when he didn't hesitate. When he was honest with her. Jonathan leaned down and pressed his lips against her, pulling her into a kiss she was unlikely to forget.

The boy reached his hand, cupping her face gently as he pulled her closer against him. Jonathan kissed her softly but firmly, before pulling away. He waited for a reaction from her, but Reagan just stared into his eyes. She finally smiled, moving her hand and resting it at the back of his neck before pulling him in for another kiss.

Their moment was unfortunately interrupted by faint ringing. Reagan pulled away just as things were getting good. She narrowed her eyes, looking to the house. "Did you hear that?" She asked him. Jonathan almost wanted to say no, so they could continue what they were doing, but he heard it too. "The phone." Jonathan realized, standing up from the bench.

He moved back inside, going to pick up the phone. Jonathan held the phone to his eye, listening to the voice on the other side. "Mom?" He asked, relieved to hear her voice. Reagan joined him, studying him as a smile grew on his face and tears filled his eyes. "Oh my God... I– I'll be right there. I'll bring Reagan. I'll see you soon, okay? I love you too. Bye." He said before hanging up the phone. He let out a breath of relief, looking to Reagan. She looked up at him expectingly, almost knowing for sure what Joyce called about.

"They found Will." He said, making Reagan laugh in relief. She threw her arms around him as happiness flooded her system. Jonathan chuckled as he lifted the short girl off the floor, gripping her like he was never going to let go. He finally set her down and met her eyes. Jonathan smiled before leaning in, only to be cut off.

Steve cleared his throat, making the boy jump away from her. Jonathan glared over at him, while Steve grinned and draped his arm around Nancy. "Just because of tonight doesn't mean I approve of this–" Steve was cut off when Nancy elbowed him sharply in the rips. He coughed,"Never mind." Steve said, reaching over to rub his side as he looked down at his girlfriend.

Reagan chuckled as she sent a smile at Nancy. She then looked over at Jonathan,"Let's go see your brother, yeah?" She told him. Jonathan smiled down at her and nodded his head.

* * *

While the drive to the hospital wasn't that long, it felt longer, only because Jonathan and Reagan couldn't wait to set their eyes on Will. It felt like he had been gone for ages, even though the boy had only been gone for a week. Too much had happened though to make them feel like that amount of time had actually passed. It felt like more.

Soon enough, they will all waiting in his hospital room. Will was unconscious as he laid on the hospital bed, and the people who cared most about him waited for him to wake up.

The monitor beeped steadily as Will blinked his eyes open. The first thing he saw when he opened his eyes were the faces of his mother, his brother, and Reagan. He looked at his family with a smile.

"Hey..." Joyce perked up as soon as she noticed his eyes were open. "Hi, sweetheart." She said softly, gently brushing his hair back. "Hey." Jonathan mumbled, reaching out and taking his arm in his hands. Reagan smiled with tears in her eyes at the sight of Will,"Hey, Will." She greeted him.

Will looked at the three,"Where... where am I?" He asked them. Joyce sighed, looking to her eldest. "You're home. You're home now." Jonathan assured his little brother. "You're safe." Reagan said, reaching for the young boy's hand. "Jonathan." Will grinned at his brother. "Yeah, it's me, buddy." Jonathan confirmed, a tear slipping down his cheek. "We missed you. We really missed you." He said, looking over to Reagan.

"Are you guys okay?" Will asked softly, looking to the bandages on Jonathan and Reagan's hand. "What, this? It's just a cut. It's nothing." Jonathan dismissed. "We're okay, Will." Reagan assured the boy. Jonathan smiled as he looked at his brother,"You're worried about our hands." He couldn't help but chuckle, making his mother and Reagan chuckle too. They almost forgot how great a kid Will was. They had spent too much time apart from him.

"Oh, hey, uh..." Jonathan looked over to Reagan and she clued in, reaching for the box they had brought. "We brought you some stuff... so you don't get bored in here." Jonathan mentioned, taking the box from Reagan and placing it down on the bed. "Uh, I made you a new mix tape." Jonathan said, reaching for the cassette before handing it to Will. "There's some stuff on there I think you really might like." He told him.

Reagan smiled, pulling out a comic book,"X-Men 134... courtesy of Dustin." She chuckled lightly as she looked at Will. "Speaking of which..." She turned her attention to Joyce who nodded her head. She tapped Will's hand gently,"I'll be right back. Another surprise." She told him.

Will smiled over at Jonathan,"Another?" He asked weakly.

* * *

Reagan opened the door to the waiting room, catching Mike's eyes first. She gave the young boy a breath nod, which got him to his feet instantly. "You guys." Mike shook Lucas and Dustin, who had passed out while waiting. "Guys, he's up. Will is up. Guys, Will's up." Mike rushed out. Lucas and Dustin grunted as they woke up, and ran after Mike ran out of the waiting room. Reagan held the door open, chuckling as the boy ran out. "Guys, come on!" Mike urged his friends who weren't going fast enough.

She followed after the boys, who screamed and cheered as they entered Will's hospital room. Joyce told them to be careful but all of them went forth to squish the boy who had just woke up. Jonathan chuckled as he watched, smiling as Reagan entered back into the room.

"Guys, guys, go easy on him." Jonathan told the boys, but Will had the biggest grin on his face when he greeted his friends. "You won't believe what happened when you were gone, man." Lucas told him. "It was mental." Dustin agreed. "You had a funeral." Lucas pointed out. "Jennifer Hayes was crying." Dustin added. "And Troy peed himself." Lucas snickered. "What?" Will asked. "In front of the whole school!" Dustin exclaimed.

Will began coughing which brought the boys back into reality. The smiles melted off their faces as they watched him with concern. "You okay?" Mike asked him. "It got me. The Demogorgon." Will explained. "We know." Mike said. "It's okay. It's dead." He added, trying to be assuring. "We made a new friend. She stopped it. She saved us. But she's gone now." Mike explained.

"Her name's Eleven." Dustin said. Will raised his brows,"Like the number?" He wondered. "Well, we call her 'El' for short." Lucas shrugged his shoulders casually. "She's basically a wizard." Dustin mentioned. "She has superpowers." Lucas whispered to Will. "More like a Yoda." Mike interjected. "She flipped a van with her mind, and these agents were trying to shoot us–" Dustin, Lucas and Mike began to recount their adventure much to Will's excitement.

Jonathan and Reagan watched the boys fondly, glad Will was among friends once again. They barely noticed Nancy was standing behind them, until the sight made her sad. She left the hospital room, and Reagan noticed her leave. She went out after her, guessing what she was upset about.

"Nance." Reagan stopped the girl. Nancy paused, turning around to look at her. She wasn't so sure she was up to talking to Reagan about Barbara as of yet. The subject was too upsetting for her. "I'm sorry." Reagan simply said. "About Barb. And if you need to talk– when you're ready to talk... I'll be there." She told her, assuring her that if Nancy needed, she would always be her friend. Nancy nodded her head gently,"Thanks... for the offer. I'll keep that in mind." Nancy said, turning back in order to walk away.

But she paused after only a few steps. Nancy turned on her heel, looking back at Reagan. "You know... you're a good friend, Reagan." She told the blonde. "Thank you." Nancy said with a soft smile which made Reagan smile, and then she walked down the hall to go back to her parents.


	11. A Christmas Story

**A/N: THE SECOND SEASON IS ALMOST HERE! Which means this is the long over due ending scene of this one. I hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

It was funny how much changed in a month.

Reagan had grown in a way that if she looked in the mirror, while it wouldn't show on the outside, the blonde would be able to see it in her eyes. But the realization never hit, as it was hard to when her mind was occupied. She had gotten closer with Nancy, finally learning what having a true friend was like, and still remembering Barb's words and thanking the departed girl when she was by herself. Her relationship with her brother had improved, and it was different but nice for Steve to see Reagan wear her heart on her sleeve for the first time.

But more importantly, she had him. Just when she thought the trauma of everything that happened would hit her, Jonathan was a welcome distraction that kept all the memories of the monster away.

On a cold December night, the two walked hand in hand, oblivious to the gentle snow that fell around them as they made their way to Jonathan's car.

"Admit it." She poked at his arm with her free hand, giggling as she nearly slipped over a patch of ice. Jonathan chuckled at her antics, keeping her steady as the girl nearly went down. "I'm not going to say anything." He defended, holding his ground until Reagan started pouting. The boy sighed, rolling his eyes,"You know that's not fair." Jonathan argued at her.

"Then admit it." Reagan simply asked of him. Jonathan reached his car, unlocking it and proceeding to open the passenger side door for her. He leaned gently on the frame, still holding her hand. His eyes dropped to where their hands met and he gave her a little squeeze. "Fine. It was a good movie." He reluctantly admitted. Reagan giggled in triumph, moving closer to him. "I told you so." She boasted, leaning in to kiss him gently. Jonathan kissed her back softly before pulling away. "We should go or we'll be late." He reminded her.

She frowned, nodding her head. Reagan let go of his hand as she slipped into the passenger seat. Jonathan closed the door behind her, moving around his car to the driver's seat. He opened his door, slipping inside and putting the key in the ignition.

The drive from the movie theatre to the Wheeler's house wasn't too far away, so luckily the two arrived just in time to pick up Will from his game. Jonathan unbuckled his seatbelt as soon as they pulled into a space right outside of the Wheeler's household. "You good to wait in the car?" Jonathan double-checked with her. Reagan gave him a small nod, watching him head inside. She waited until he was inside to unbuckle her own seatbelt and exit the car.

Nancy opened the door to her house, watching as Reagan made her way to the entrance. "Hi." The brunette greeted, wrapping an arm around her torso due to the cold weather. Reagan waved, meeting Nancy with a quick embrace. "Do you have it?" Reagan asked and Nancy nodded in confirmation. "It's in my room." Nancy explained, closing the door behind Reagan as the blonde entered her house.

Her task was cut short by two arms wrapping around her. Reagan groaned as she was squeezed tightly by her twin brother. "Steve!" She choked out before her brother finally released her from his grip. "Sorry." Steve apologized lightly. "Did you call Mom this morning?" Reagan asked him. Steve made a face, clearly indicating that he forgot to. "Steve! You know that was the deal about them going away for their anniversary in the first place–" "Shhh. Go get your present." Steve quieted, looking to his girlfriend for help.

"Don't worry, he'll call her first thing tomorrow morning." Nancy said, grabbing Reagan's hand and dragging her away from her brother and up the stairs. The two girls made it to Nancy's room, and Nancy let go of Reagan's hand in order to retrieve what the girl came looking for. Nancy reached underneath her bed and brought out the wrapped gift. "You know, I still don't understand why you couldn't have kept it underneath your own bed." Nancy admitted it.

Reagan blushed a little as her friend handed her the gift,"I– He would've found it if I did that." She confessed, trying to hide the embarrassment on her face. "No!" Nancy gasped in surprise. Reagan held the gift tightly to her chest and nodded her head meekly. "Steve doesn't know, right?" Nancy asked. "God, no!" Reagan answered,"He hates Jonathan. He's still getting used to the idea of us dating." She explained, scratching the back of her neck.

"Was it...–" "I rather not discuss the details but..." Reagan smiled small which made Nancy laugh. "That's great, Reagan, it is." Nancy smiled, studying her friend's face. "Have you told him yet then?" She questioned and Reagan shook her head a little bit. "Have you told Steve?" She questioned back at her friend. Nancy pursed her lips together,"I mean, we've been together longer than you and Jonathan–" "That wasn't a yes, Nancy." Reagan pointed out gently to her.

Both girls picked up Jonathan's voice at the same time when he came out of the basement with Will. Reagan hide the present behind her back as Nancy was the first to exit her room. "Hey, Jonathan, wait up!" Nancy called from the top of the staircase, before rushing down the stairs with Reagan. The boy was surprised to see them both, unaware that Reagan had left the car.

Jonathan was a little confused until Reagan made her way over to him, revealing the wrapped present she had hid behind her back. "I thought we were going to wait until my house to exchange gifts." He told her. She rolled her eyes gently at him,"You don't have to open it now." Reagan pointed out. Will smirked a little at her remark, looking up at his brother,"You should open it now." He said.

"Get in the car." Jonathan chuckled at his little brother. "I'll call shotgun." Will said before making a run for the front seat. "Will! Don't run, there's ice!" Reagan called after him, handing the present over to Jonathan before unlinking her arm from his and running after the boy. He watched as they reached his car and Reagan ran up behind Will and started tickling him.

He started laughing, slipping on the ice and tumbling back onto the snow. "See I told you!" Reagan exclaimed as Will laughed. "That's only because you know my weaknesses!" Will protested as he got up from the snow, wiping off any that lingered on his clothing. He looked over to notice Reagan opening the door to the front seat. She smiled and gestured,"Go for it." She told him, letting the young boy climb into the front seat. She then proceeded to get into the back seat as Jonathan made his way to the driver's seat.

"Don't forget to buckle up." Reagan told Will, watching him as he buckled up his seatbelt. Will then looked down at the present before looking up at his brother,"Can I open it?" Will questioned. Jonathan hesitated for a moment, turning back at Reagan. The blonde gave him a tiny nod and he looked back to his brother and did the same. "Yeah, sure." Jonathan answered. Will smiled and ripped the wrapping paper off.

Will grinned,"Whoa... pretty cool." He said, turning the box to reveal to Jonathan that Reagan had gotten him a new camera to replace his old one. Jonathan looked at the box fondly and nodded. "Yeah... yeah, pretty cool." He agreed, looking behind at Reagan. Will looked between the two teenagers,"You two aren't going to start making out, right?" He asked. "Will!" Reagan reacted, making the young boy laugh at how embarrassed she got. Jonathan just smiled as he drove away from the Wheeler's household.

* * *

They pulled into the driveway, Will exiting the car first. He took off inside to escape the cold weather, while Jonathan leaned over to collect the box. "Do you like it?" Reagan asked curiously as he took it into his hands. She watched hopefully as his eyes shifted to her. "Get out of the car." Jonathan said quietly, and it was too dark in the night to make out his full facial expression. Reagan worried as she unbuckled her seatbelt. She exited the car, letting the cold air hit her face.

She rubbed her hands together, feeling more cold than it actually was. She waited as Jonathan walked around to meet her. Reagan frowned,"You hate it." She presumed. "Or worse... you probably wish I didn't buy it, right? But– I mean... I've been wanting to replace your camera since the day my brother broke it. And Steve pitched in too, okay? So... I know you said you didn't want me to get you anything expensive but– you have a real talent, Jonathan, and I just didn't want–" "Reagan." Jonathan stopped her as he reached her. Her wide-eyed gaze shifted from the ground over to him. "Yeah?" She asked him, a little nervous.

"I– I love it." Jonathan told her. He wanted to say more, but they had just started dating.

"You do?" She asked him. Jonathan nodded his head in confirmation. "You do." Reagan realized with a smile as he leaned in to give her a kiss. She wrapped his arms and pulled him closer to her. Jonathan pulled away, meeting her eyes,"I do. Thank you." He told her gently. "I'm glad and you're welcome." She responded.

Jonathan took her hand into his,"Come on, I have a present for you too." He admitted, pulling her inside of his house. He stopped to set down his coat and helped her out of her own coat. "Reagan, sweetie!" Joyce noticed the blonde's presence instantly, rushing over to give her a hug. Joyce squeezed Reagan tight with a grin on her face. Reagan smiled at the woman as she pulled away. "Do you need any help–" "Present, first." Jonathan reminded Reagan before she went running off to help his mother.

He led her down the hall to his room. "Keep the door open!" Joyce called over, reminding them as Jonathan led her into his room. He stuck his head out to give his mom a look. "Mom." He mouthed over to her and she gave him a face. "Sorry." She mouthed back. Jonathan slipped back into his room, looking to Reagan. "You can sit down if you want." He told her.

Reagan nodded her head, taking a seat on his bed. Jonathan opened his closet, rummaging around before producing a wrapped present. He moved back over to her, sitting down besides her. Jonathan was excited as he handed her the gift, watching her intently. "Open it." Jonathan said, giving her permission. She smiled, and removing the wrapping paper away gently until she caught a glance of what he had given her.

"A photo album?" She asked, looking at the cover. Jonathan nodded,"Yeah– I was going to make a mix tape but uh... I found something and I– I thought... I mean... open it up. You'll understand." He said, hoping that would be true. Reagan opened it up, looking to the picture on the first page. Her breath caught in her throat as she studied the picture.

She looked so young.

Her fingertips grazed the picture. "I was– what? Twelve or thirteen?" She realized as she looked at it. "You were–" "Will's age." He confirmed. She studied her natural mousy brown hair color, but noticed the lack of her glasses which she used to wear quite frequently at that age. Reagan noticed the dress she was wearing in the picture and the young boy who accompanied her as well. If she thought she looked young, Jonathan looked even younger. "This was– I thought... I thought you didn't remember." She admitted, looking over at him.

Jonathan shrugged his shoulders a little,"I didn't want to, for the most part. After that... you dyed your hair, ditched your glasses, and limited your time to spending it with Carol, Tommy, and your brother." He remembered, frowning a little. Reagan frowned as she stared at the picture,"I made so many mistakes." She realized. Jonathan shook his head,"No... it was not just you, Reagan. We were kids. I made mistakes too." He said as he looked at the picture.

"I... I find that hard to believe." Reagan said softly, touching the picture gently. Jonathan put his arm around her, pulling her close to him. "I did... I let you convince me that you were something that you're not. And it took me a long time to realize... you were the same girl. The same girl that I have always..." Jonathan trailed off as she flipped through the pages, her eyes landing on a certain page.

"You fixed them?" She realized with a chuckle as she stared down at the pictures Jonathan had taken in the diner. They were ripped but he had took the time to tape them back together. He nodded his head over at her,"Yeah. They're important so... well, they're all important. Because it's you." Jonathan said, turning the page. "I had some help. Not all are ones that I took. Your mom really helped. She dug up some pretty nice photo albums." He admitted.

Reagan recognized the mischievous look in his eyes. "What did you find?" Reagan asked, a little scared as he flipped the page to find some portraits she and her brother did when they were only two years old. "No!" Reagan said, covering her blushing face as Jonathan flipped to the pages where he had manage to collect almost every embarrassing childhood photograph of herself. "This isn't fair, I'm going to need to see some pictures of you when you were a kid too." She argued.

He chuckled, shaking his head. "No way am I letting you see bathtubs photos of me when I'm six." He pointed out. Reagan's jaw dropped in awe,"Bathtub?" She asked excitedly. Jonathan rolled his eyes lightly when she started to shake him around a bit. "Come on." She begged as he finally reached blank pages in the photo album. "It's not complete." Reagan noticed. Jonathan nodded his head a little. She smiled,"I guess we'll have to finish it together, won't we?" She said. "And when we run out of pages, I'm buying you a new one." Jonathan said.

"Yeah?" Reagan asked, wrapping her arms around him. Jonathan turned to look at her and he nodded his head,"Yeah."

* * *

"What you got there? That one yours?" Jonathan asked, looking down at his brother. Will held up the present and nodded,"Yeah." He confirmed. "Looks pretty big." Jonathan commented. He lifted his camera up to take a picture just as Will started shaking the box. "Be careful, you'll break it." Jonathan warned as he lowered his camera.

He focused his his camera on someone else. Joyce set down the platters and bowls of food for the dinner, noticing her son was taking a picture of her just as the flash went off. She chuckled, lifting her hands up,"What are you... what are you doing?" The woman questioned, a little embarrassed to be the subject of a photo she wasn't prepared for. Jonathan smirked slightly with a shrug,"Documenting." He explained briefly, snapping a picture of Reagan as she carried in a plate of food.

"Oh, why?" Joyce asked as Reagan set down the place. Jonathan grinned as he snapped a shot of the two of them together. "Because..." He simply said. Reagan smiled as she looked over at him,"Reminds me of last Christmas." She commented, and Jonathan simply got closer to snap a shot of her mildly annoyed look. Reagan then smirked,"You keep doing that and I'll do a repeat of the diner, but this time with mashed potatoes." She threatened with a chuckle.

Jonathan lowered his camera, looking over at the food. "It looks great." He complimented his mother. "Oh, this is just so overcooked. And look, the potatoes are runny..." Joyce said, shifting through the mushy mashed potatoes with a spoon. "They're so runny." She sighed, a little disappointed. Jonathan moved over, placing his hand on her shoulder,"Mom– mom, it's gonna be great." He assured her.

Will rushed to sit down at the table,"It's definitely an Atari." He said. "An a-what-i?" Joyce asked him, completely confused. "The green present. It's an Atari." He said as he leaned back in his chair. Joyce joined the table, along with Jonathan who set his camera down, and Reagan. "I felt Dustin's today and it's the same exact weight." Will deduced.

"Really? Well..." Joyce trailed off, smiling over at her youngest. "We'll have to see, won't we?" She told him. Will said nothing, getting up. Joyce raised her hand,"Hey, no more snooping." She scolded. "No, I forgot to wash my hands. I'll be right back." Will told her, disappearing to the washroom. "Okay." Joyce said, looking over to Reagan. "He's washing his hands?" She asked her in a whisper.

Reagan shrugged, unfolding her napkin. "I didn't even have to ask." Reagan said, a little surprised herself.

They began serving themselves food, and Reagan leaned over to fill Will's plate up so he could eat when he got back. She spent enough time to know what kind of food he liked. When Will returned, he looked a little pale. He took his seat again quietly. "Are you okay?" Joyce noticed. Will looked over at her and nodded,"Yeah, I'm okay." He convinced.

As they started eating, the conversation changed, which steered attention away from whatever was going on with Will. Things returned had to normal, for the most part, and everybody was trying to distant themselves from how strange things had been. After all, it was uncanny.


	12. The Past is the Past: Part 1

**A/N: IT'S SO CLOSE! I am counting down the days until the second season. To tide you all over, I have a little one shot (that's in two parts...) that I have been working on for this story for a little bit now. I hope you guys appreciate it and enjoy it, because it's just something I did for fun for this story. Anyways, let's begin.**

 **The year is 1979...**

* * *

"You'll never believe what just happened!"

Carol's voice cut through Reagan's concentration, pulling the girl away from her book. Reagan sighed, eyes still focused on the content within the pages right up until Carol's freshly manicured hands whipped the book away from her. "Carol." The girl stressed, frowning as she adjusted her glasses. "Oh, honey, this isn't even for school. What is this?" Carol questioned as she slammed the book shut, turning it over in her hands so she could study it. "It's _Carrie_ by Stephen King." Reagan explained simply. She watched as her best friend cringed, dropping the book on the table. "Ugh! Like the movie? My mom would never in her right mind let me near that movie." Carol pointed out.

Reagan shrugged her shoulders a little,"I went to see the movie with Steve and Tommy." She explained simply. Carol's eyes seemed to perk at the mere mention of her brother's best friend. The redhead took a seat across from her, looking around the cafeteria until her eyes set on a certain boy. "Speaking of Tommy H.–" Carol began, shifting her gaze back to Reagan,"Guess who just asked me to the Snow Ball." She giggled, biting her lip as she rested her chin on her hand.

"Simon B.?" Reagan asked cluelessly, unaware that her friend was still eying a certain boy. "Reagan, get real here!" Carol begged her, looking back in the direction of a certain boy she had been staring at for the past few minutes. "Oh..." Reagan mumbled, turning around to see who Carol was looking at. Reagan cringed at the familiar sight of her twin brother,"Please tell me it's not Steve." She rushed out, whipping her head back at Carol.

The redhead rolled her eyes,"No, you dimwit." Carol said coldly,"I meant Tommy H." She clarified. Reagan furrowed her brows, looking back at Tommy before looking back at Carol. "Why would he ask you to the Snow Ball?" She questioned. Carol narrowed her eyes, taking immediate offense. " _Excuse me?_ " Carol asked. Reagan frowned,"I meant– I mean– it's months away from now." She tried to explain but Carol was still visibly upset.

She crossed her arms over her chest,"Please, Tommy H. and I have been playing this game since June." Carol gloated, which only made Reagan narrow her eyes in confusion. "He didn't know your name before August." She pointed out. "He did too!" Carol snapped back defensively. Reagan shook her head with a slight laugh,"No, _no_ , he didn't. He signed your yearbook in June with 'Have a good summer, Cheryl'. I remember because you cried for like two weeks." She mentioned.

"Well, how would you feel? I've liked him since the third grade and the first time he actually notices me he thinks my name is Cheryl? Cheryl!" She exclaimed with a huff. Reagan chuckled a little,"It was kind of funny." She admitted, much to Carol's dismay. " _Anyway_ , he definitely knows my name now because he asked me to the Snow Ball." Carol boasted. Reagan rolled her eyes a little,"That's only because someone started stuffing their training bra." She said underneath her breath, reaching for her chocolate milk.

"What?" Carol questioned, furrowing her eyebrows as Reagan sipped her milk. Reagan placed the milk carton back down on her lunch tray, wiping her mouth. "Nothing." She said innocently. Carol rolled her eyes,"Whatever. You know what this means though, right?" Carol asked her. Reagan furrowed her brows, shaking her head,"No." She said.

Carol sighed frustratedly,"Honey, you're going to need to find a date to the Snow Ball." She explained. Reagan's face went white as her eyes widened. She hadn't even had her first kiss yet and now she was expected to get some boy to ask her out to the dance. "Carol, I don't know if I can do that." Reagan said nervously, adjusting her glasses. "Of course you can." Carol shrugged off the girl's concerns, reaching over the table and taking off Reagan's glasses. "I can't see–" Reagan began to argue but Carol cut her off with a scoff.

While inspecting the glasses, Carol brought them nearer to her eyes. "I knew it! I knew you weren't blind." Carol declared with a grin, but Reagan still snatched them back from the redhead. "I am blind, Carol. I can barely read without them." Reagan said meekly, reaching over and collecting her book, placing it back inside her backpack. "That doesn't mean you have to wear them all the time though." Carol said, standing up and moving around the table. "I say you ditch the glasses, lose the braid, and maybe even dye your hair." She suggested, already unbraiding Reagan's hair. "Carol," Reagan protested, shooing the girl away and fixing her braid that Carol tried to take apart.

"Come on, Reagan, I'm trying to help you. No boy's going to want to look at you when you dress like that. Don't you want to be liked? Like your brother? Imagine if we were sitting with him and the rest of the cool kids. You'd have no problem getting a date then. Talk to Steve, maybe he'll even help." Carol persuaded. Reagan shook her head hesitantly, looking over in the direction of her brother. "I... I don't know, Carol. Steve's– I mean... two weeks into seventh grade and he's already dating the most popular girl in the eighth grade girl." She frowned, noticing her brother with his girlfriend, sitting and laughing together.

Her friend put her hand on her shoulder,"Girls like Jodi Marsh get boys like your brother, and girls like me get boys like Tommy H." She explained, looking down at Reagan,"You want to know what's the same between me and Jodi Marsh?" Carol asked. Reagan furrowed her brows at her friend,"You both stuff your bras?" She questioned. Carol glared at her,"No. We both focus on our appearances. We both look presentable and that's why boys like us." She said.

"I'm still certain it's because you both stuff your bras." Reagan argued which only made Carol roll her eyes at her again. "God, how can you even tell? Jodi Marsh's in the eighth grade, she doesn't stuff her bra." Carol defended the blonde, eying her from across the cafeteria. Reagan turned back to look at her,"Well, she does based on what Steve told me." She shrugged. Carol's eyes went wide,"Steve told you?" She said in surprise. Reagan shrugged her shoulders again,"I mean... technically he told Tommy and forgot that I was in the room." Reagan clarified.

Carol laughed,"Just wait until I tell Nicole about this!" She squealed in delight, taking off in the direction of the table Nicole was currently sitting at. Reagan felt brushed off, and frowned as she watched Carol just leave her alone. "... Bye." Reagan said, mostly to herself. She sighed, taking her glasses and placing them back on her face. She blinked a couple of times before taking them off again. Reagan looked around the cafeteria of Hawkins Middle School until her eyes caught a certain boy. He was sitting all by himself at a table in the corner. He had headphones on, signaling to those around him that he didn't want to be disturbed. She studied the book he was reading, realizing it was _The Shining_.

It was Jonathan Byers.

She recognized him as soon as he looked up from his book and locked eyes with her. Reagan smiled back at him, but Jonathan just quickly hid back into his book, hunching over as he hid his face behind the book to avoid her gaze. Her smile dropped and she turned back to her lunch tray.

* * *

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Byers." Reagan greeted, her school books tucked close to her chest as soon as the door opened up. Joyce smiled down at the middle schooler,"Please, Reagan, it's Joyce. How many times do I have to tell you to call me Joyce?" The woman asked with a slight chuckle. Reagan smiled small, a little embarrassed that she forgot. "I promise this time it'll stick. I'm still new to this. You're still my only customer." She explained. Joyce let the girl inside her house,"Really? I find that hard to believe. I mean, you just started this summer so... but really? I mean– Will has friends who I'm sure their parents need a sitter." Joyce mentioned.

Reagan perked up a little,"Would you mind dropping my name? I want to save up to buy a dress." She said. Joyce grinned at that new piece of information,"A dress? Wouldn't your mother buy you that?" Joyce asked. Reagan nodded her head,"She would, but that's not the point. I'm in the seventh grade now and I should be independent enough to buy my own things with money I earn." She pointed out. Joyce laughed as she stared down at the girl,"Sweetie, I know you want to be a big girl and grow up... but you're only twelve. Don't forget that." She said, reaching over to give Reagan a gentle squeeze on the shoulder.

She pursed her lips together,"I'm almost thirteen, you know." Reagan pointed out. Joyce nodded her head,"I– I know, but still..." She said, looking the girl over. "What do you need the dress for, anyways?" Joyce questioned. "You know that school dance? The Snow Ball? I went last year with my friend Carol and it was fun. But now that she has a date she said I can't go with her alone... and she also said I can't wear the dress that I wore last year." Reagan frowned. Joyce placed her hands on her hips,"Sounds like your friend there has a lot of rules, doesn't it? That tiring?" She asked.

"Exhausting." Reagan giggled.

The woman smiled back at her,"I should get going for my shift. The number of my work is on the fridge. Don't be afraid to call if there's an emergency. I'll be back by 9 at the latest. Dinner's in the fridge, all you have to do is heat it up." Joyce pointed to the fridge before grabbing her coat. "Jonathan, did you need a ride?" She called over down the hall to her eldest. Jonathan came out of his room into the kitchen where his mother and Reagan were. He still had his book in his hand,"No, I still have half an hour and it's not too far away. I'll just take my bike." Jonathan explained, eyes still focused on the pages.

"Well, if you need me to pick you up–" "I'm fine, Mom." Jonathan was quick to cut her off. Joyce frowned as she looked at her eldest son and then turned to Reagan. "If you need anything– anything at all, _call_." She urged, before grabbing the keys to her car and exiting the house. Jonathan finally noticed the other person in the room and looked up at Reagan with wide eyes. He looked caught off guard, as if he wasn't expecting her to be in his house on a Friday night.

He blinked at her several times before speaking. "You're h-here." Jonathan swallowed a lump in his throat. Reagan nodded her head,"Yeah... more than once a week ever since you became a delivery boy." She reminded him. He nodded his head slowly,"Right..." The boy trailed off, closing his book. Reagan looked down at his book,"You know, I'm actually reading Ca–" She was stopped abruptly when Jonathan ran back to his room. She furrowed her brows and shook her head,"Every time." She whispered.

Reagan unpacked her bag, bringing out school supplies so she could do her homework. "Will!" She called, waiting for the child to come running. It was no surprise when he bursted out of his room and came running down the hall. "Scooby!" Reagan shouted with a smile and caught Will in an embrace. She picked him up off the ground, making the boy laugh. She set Will down before moving over to the table. "I brought you some crayons from my house if you'd like." She told him. "What colors?" Will asked excitedly, taking a seat at the table.

"Brown, green, and blue..." She said, pulling them out of her bag. "I thought I brought more but I guess not. I'll bring more next time." Reagan promised, grabbing a piece of paper for the boy. She took a seat at the table with him before opening up one of her science textbooks. She began to take notes on the reading just as Jonathan emerged back from his room.

He went for the door, but was stopped by a certain little boy. "Shaggy." Will said quietly, turning in his chair to look back at his brother. Jonathan pursed his lips together, moving towards the boy. "Scoob." Jonathan responded back with a small smile, giving Will a quick hug before heading back to the door. Reagan smiled at the small interaction, watching as Jonathan left his house.

* * *

"What are you doing?!" She didn't expect to be yelled at so soon, considering she hadn't even called Joyce yet. It was Jonathan, however, that was doing the yelling. "Will, get back." He told his brother, dropping his backpack and rushing into the kitchen to aid her. He grabbed a dishcloth, airing out the smoke that was coming from the oven. "What did you do?!" He yelled at Reagan, noticing the girl's stressed expression. "I– I was just heating up the food. I don't know what happened, I put it in at the regular temperature." She defended. "Well, did you leave a timer?" Jonathan asked angrily, ripping the oven mitts off her hand and reaching in to collect the burnt meatloaf after placing them on his own hands.

The girl frowned, looking back to Will. "Go to your room. Jonathan and I will fix this, okay?" She instructed, placing her hands on her hips as the little boy took off in the direction of his room. Reagan reached up to wipe her eyes as soon as tears slipped down her cheeks. "Well, great. You ruined dinner." Jonathan closed the oven, turning it off as he placed the dish with the burnt meatloaf down on the counter. He turned back to see that Reagan was crying and he quickly removed the oven mitts. "What's wrong?" His tone switched from anger to concern as soon as he noticed she was sobbing.

She plopped down in a chair, shaking her head. "This day has been a disaster." She lamented, placing her head in her hands. Jonathan furrowed is brows,"Why do you say that?" He questioned, taking a seat across from her at his kitchen table. "Jonathan, be honest... am I pretty?" Reagan asked, removing her hands from her face and looking up at him. "Wait a second... you burnt dinner because you don't believe you're pretty?" Jonathan was confused as he stared at her. She covered her face back up in her hands,"Ugh... maybe... I don't know." Reagan admitted as she hid her face from him. The embarrassment was too much for her to deal with at that moment.

Jonathan narrowed his eyes at her, trying to understand why she would get worried over such a thing. "You're pretty." The boy suddenly insisted out loud. He always thought so, but never imagined that in a million years he would say that to her. Reagan moved her hands away, meeting his eyes. "I am?" She asked him. "Just the way I am right now?" Reagan looked at him hopefully. Jonathan nodded his head,"Just the way you are right now... you're the prettier girl in all of Hawkins, Reagan." Jonathan froze, swallowing another lump in his throat when he realized what he just said.

He turned away from her smile, standing up from the chair. "Look, I'll talk to Will and I'll make something for dinner. I'm pretty good at making eggs. My mom doesn't need to know about all of this." Jonathan decided, looking around the kitchen. He finally looked back at her,"You're a good babysitter, Reagan. Will loves you. Don't let this, or whoever says you're not pretty, get you down." He tried giving her that advice, before moving to clean up the mess.

Reagan smiled, moving behind Jonathan as he faced the counter. "You're sweet, you know that?" She whispered in his ear, pressing a soft peck on his cheek. The boy instantly blushed, trying to hide his face form her so she wouldn't see that she had that kind of effect on her. He waited until he could no longer feel her breath on the back of his neck to turn around to look at her.

Looking at her, Jonathan realized he meant every word of it. He truly believed she was the prettiest girl in all of Hawkins.

* * *

By the time his mother came home, Will was fully fed and tucked in for bed. He had fallen asleep as soon as Reagan read him a story having to do with a fantastic fox. Although Will insisted his was too big for bedtime stories, Reagan always managed to find one interesting enough to read him to sleep. Reagan emerged from his room with a smile, locking eyes with Jonathan. "He's out like a light." She told him, making Jonathan smile back at her.

It was that moment then both of them heard the unlocking of the front door. Joyce Byers entered her house, looking worn out as she took off her coat. "Hey, guys." Joyce commented with a surprised tone, not used to seeing Jonathan and Reagan standing so close together. Normally, her son would try to stay as far away from the girl in order to avoid the risk of letting Reagan know about his little crush on her. "Did you run into any trouble?" Joyce asked Reagan, which made the girl a little nervous. "No, she did great." Jonathan interrupted, noting the panicked look in Reagan's eyes.

She smiled back at him, silently thanking him with her eyes for saving her. Jonathan looked back at his mother,"Time for bed, Mom?" He asked her. Joyce chuckled a little, turning her head towards the kitchen. "Did you guys burn popcorn or–" "Mom, bed." Jonathan urged, going as far as pushing his mother towards her bedroom. Joyce laughed, worming herself away from her son. "Hold your horses, Jonathan, I still have to pay Reagan."

Joyce reached into her wallet, handing over the money to Reagan. The girl inspected her pay, noticing it was not the money they had agreed upon. "Mrs– _Joyce_ , this is– five dollars extra." Reagan pointed out to the woman. Joyce nodded her head with a smile,"Well, you're saving up to buy a dress for the Snow Ball, right? I figured it wouldn't hurt to help out." Joyce said simply. Reagan smiled, young enough to be unaware of Joyce's financial situation. "Thank you, Joyce." She said gratefully.

"S-snow Ball?" Jonathan couldn't help but ask as he looked at Reagan. The girl turned her head and nodded at him,"Yeah, I need a dress... and a date." She frowned slightly as she moved into the kitchen to pack up her stuff. She put the money in her own wallet, before closing her backpack. Reagan waved at Joyce and Jonathan,"Have a goodnight." The girl said politely, walking out of the Byers household.

"You gonna ask her?" Joyce questioned as soon as the girl took off on her bike. She looked over at her son with a huge smile on his face that only made him cringe. "Mom, don't be gross. It's... Reagan..." Jonathan trailed off, reaching up to touch his cheek gently, still remembering the way her lips felt when she kissed his cheek.

* * *

Reagan sighed as she waited on the bench. It had been getting colder outside since the winter was drawing near and nearer. Normally, around this time of year, Reagan wouldn't wait outside. She'd find somewhere nice and warm to hide out in rather than wait outside. But Carol promised that she would meet her after her double date with Tommy, her brother, and Jodi Marsh. They were going to go shopping for dresses, despite the fact that the Snow Ball was around the corner and Reagan still didn't have a date.

The girl looked around, looking for any sign that Carol had arrived to meet her for their shopping date. But sadly, the redhead was nowhere in sight. The date must've ran longer than Carol expected. Reagan stood up, crinkling her nose at the familiar drop of a snowflake. It was started to snow, which definitely meant that she had to take cover before it really came down. Reagan looked around, trying to see the nearest place that wouldn't immediately kick her out for not buying anything. She didn't want to spend any money before Carol showed up.

She settled as soon as she saw that she was near the Hawkins Police Department. Reagan decided to enter the building, knowing that nothing really happened in this town which meant that it was often quiet in there. As soon as she entered the station, all eyes went on her. "Can I help you?" Flo adjusted her glasses at the girl. Reagan looked over at the secretary and politely shook her head. "Oh– no, I just... I didn't have anywhere else to go right now. It started snowing outside." She tried to explain.

"Well, Miss, you know this isn't a place to avoid the snow." Flo pointed out. Reagan frowned up at the older woman,"Does this mean you're gonna kick me out?" She questioned. Flo pursed her lips together, looking around at the station, where even an officer was taking a nap at his desk. She sighed and stood up from her chair,"How would you like a cup of hot cocoa?" Flo asked the young girl, which brought a smile onto Reagan's face.

Jim Hopper exited his office with a mug in his hand, seeing that he had run out of coffee. The chief made his way over to pour himself another cup of coffee, surprised to see the secretary chatting up some middle schooler. While Flo was notably drinking a cup of coffee, Hopper recognized the tiny marshmallows in Reagan's cup. He pursed his lips together, remembering that how Sara used to like her hot chocolate.

Reagan noticed the chief immediately, shifting in her seat and straightening her posture. "Are you the new chief?" Reagan couldn't help but question Hopper, her curiosity showing in her expression. The man sighed, pouring himself a cup of coffee. He nodded his head vaguely,"And what are you? An officer?" Hopper asked her, clearly sarcastic in his tone but Reagan let out a laugh that seemed genuine. "I don't know if I'd be very good with a gun." Reagan admitted as she sipped her hot chocolate.

Hopper removed his sidearm, placing it down on a desk. "Why don't you give it a shot?" He asked her jokingly. "Hopper, do I have to remind you that the chief of police does not give firearms to minors?" Flo sent him a glare, which caused the man to remove his gun from the table before the woman started lecturing him. Reagan narrowed her eyes as she looked at the man,"Aren't you from the city?" She asked. Hopper chuckled as he took a sip of his coffee,"You ask... a lot of questions, don't you?" He told her.

"I'm pretty sure that 'a lot of questions' is up to interpretation." Reagan pointed out to the man. Hopper smirked slightly at the young girl,"You might not have a career in law enforcement in the future, but let me tell you, kid, you sure sound a lot like a lawyer." He told her, looking to Flo before making his way back to his office.

"A lawyer..." Reagan mumbled to herself, almost liking the sound of it. She paused, looking out the window and noticing a certain redhead. "I should get going." Reagan announced, playing down the almost empty cup of hot chocolate. "Thank you for the cocoa." She looked at Flo with a soft smile, wrapping her scarf around her neck once more and heading out of the police station. "Have a nice day, kid!" Flo called after the girl, shaking her head with a soft smile as Reagan left.

She ran out to meet Carol, who was waiting by the bench. "You're late." Carol told her as soon as she caught up with her. Reagan frowned, stuffing her hands into the pocket of her jacket, deciding to let it go. Carol always had to be right, even if she was the one who was an hour late in the first place. "Do you have anything in mind?" Reagan asked her friend as they made their way to the dress shop.

Carol nodded her head back at her,"I'm thinking blue. Something that matches my eyes. Maybe something with flowers and flowing sleeves." She grinned as she described it. "Wow... you really thought it out." Reagan said, a little embarrassed that she had no idea what dress to get herself. It was something her mother was good at, and not herself.

They entered the shop, looking around. "I'm sure something will come to mind. Maybe yellow? Or white?" Carol suggested. Reagan stopped in tracks as soon as the door closed behind them. "Or pink." Reagan whispered, moving over slowly to a certain light pink dress that caught her eye. Reagan's hands touched the material gingerly. Her eyes were captivated by the silky material and she turned around at Carol.

"Oh my God... you're so right. I should definitely try this on." Carol announced, grabbing the dress from off the rack. "I– I thought you were going for blue!" Reagan rushed out, offending that her friend went after the dress that Reagan was clearly connecting with.

"Please, Reagan, you're not pretty enough to pull this dress off." The redhead chuckled maliciously before disappearing to the fitting rooms. Reagan frowned as she looked at the other dresses in the store, finding none that caught her eye as much as that pink dress did.

* * *

Carol sighed while in her bedroom, wearing a baby blue dress that extended to her ankles, with sleeves that were flowing down to her elbow while still managing to expose her shoulders. "I can't believe the pink dress was too expensive." She frowned as she looked into the mirror. Reagan smiled small, despite the fact the dress was too expensive for her as well. "Yeah." Reagan mumbled as she sat down on Carol's bed.

She turned, still looking in the mirror to access the dress. "Well, at least Tommy will like this dress. I look so good in it." She gleamed as she stared at herself through the mirror. "Not as good as the pink dress, but at least I got a dress." Carol commented, looking over to Reagan. "And at least I got a date." She added smugly.

Reagan frowned, glaring up at the girl. She wanted to call Carol a bitch, but because they had been best friends for so long, she knew that letting her anger get the best of her would cause the end of the friendship. As difficult as Carol was, Reagan wasn't ready for that yet. "I-I'll get a date." Reagan defended herself.

"Please, honey." Carol dismissed, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "The Snow Ball is what? A few weeks away now? If you didn't get a date by now, you're never going to get a date. It's actually a good thing that you didn't end up getting a dress. It would be really pathetic if you showed up alone while I had a date and your brother had a date. I'm pretty sure even Nicole has a date. How does it feel to be one of the losers who doesn't have a date?" Carol chuckled, playing it off as a joke despite the fact that she knew that her words were hurtful towards Reagan.

"I– I have to go. I have to work tonight." Reagan mentioned, her fists balled up by her sides as she tried to hold back her anger and disappointment. "Right. Your little job. Have fun." Carol said simply, ignoring Reagan now that it was time for her to leave. Reagan couldn't believe Carol's actions, but still said nothing as she left the girl's bedroom.

The ride from Carol's house to the Byers household felt like an eternity. The faster she tried to go on her bike, the more cold wind that hit her face which clashed with the hot tears that left her once she left Carol's house. By the time she reached the Byers household, Reagan couldn't stop crying. Her face was red as she went to wipe her tears away. She dropped her bike down, trying to contain herself as she approached the door.

Jonathan answered the door for her, pausing when he noticed she was upset once again. "Jonathan? God, did your mom already leave? I... I tried to get here as fast as I could. I had plans with Carol but she was an hour late and–" Reagan hiccuped, shaking her head as she wiped her face again. Jonathan looked at her gently,"Reagan, just... _breathe_." He reminded her but the bike ride had already winded her. She started breathing heavily, pointing to her bag. "Can you–" "I'll get it." Jonathan said immediately, rushing to her purse and grabbing her inhaler.

He brought it up to her, watching tentatively as she took a few puffs before her breathing calmed down. "Reagan... what's this about? You've been so upset lately." Jonathan noticed. Reagan frowned, clutching her inhaler in her hand,"I... it's just everyone that I know has someone to go to the dance with and I– I don't." She explained, lowering her gaze to the ground. "I know that shouldn't be a big deal but..." She trailed off when she realized she was tearing up again.

"Reagan... if you want to go home, I'd understand. I can stay with Will." He offered. Reagan nodded her head a little,"Yeah... that... that'd be awfully nice of you to do, Jonathan." She mentioned, wiping her eyes once more. Jonathan nodded his head again,"It's no problem." He told her. Reagan thanked him again before going over to collect her bike. He watched as she rode off in the direction of her house.

As soon as he shut the door to his house, he heard Will speak from the couch. "You have to ask her." Will urged him. Jonathan whipped his head around at his little brother,"What are you talking about?" He asked. "To the dance." Will clarified as he looked at his brother. "You clearly like her... _ask her_."

"You're out of your mind, Scoob, if you think Reagan will ever say yes to a guy like me." Jonathan said quietly. Will adjusted himself on the couch,"What's wrong with you, Shaggy?" He questioned. Jonathan sighed as he moved over to his brother. "Well... Reagan is like Daphne... and Daphne likes guys like Fred, not Shaggy." He tried to explain in terms that Will would understand at that age. Will frowned,"I always thought Reagan was like Velma, not Daphne. She's smart like Velma, and Velma's the one who almost always figures out the mystery." Will mentioned.

Jonathan furrowed his brows with a shrug,"Still... I don't think she'd say yes." He pointed out. Will sighed, leaning back on the couch,"She'd say yes." He insisted underneath his breath, but he was still loud enough that Jonathan was able to hear his words.

* * *

The cold wind hit his face as he sped down the street in his bike. "Whatever you do, don't let go of those flowers!" Jonathan yelled as Will clung onto Jonathan and onto the flowers he helped his older brother pick. It was amazing there were still some growing at this time of year. "You're going too fast!" Will shouted as his brother picked up his pace. "Jonathan!" He yelled again, but Jonathan's heart was beating so fast he hardly noticed.

"We're almost there!" Jonathan announced as they turned onto Reagan's street. He noticed Reagan's house in the distance, and picked up pace once more. He finally ended up slowing down when they reached her house, and Will let out a sigh of relief once the bike finally stopped. Will was the first to climb off, as he dusted off his clothes and held out the flowers to his brother. "Go get her!" The little boy encouraged, making Jonathan smile as he climbed off his bike.

Jonathan took the flowers from Will, taking a step towards her house before Will stopped him. He gestured at his brother to bend down and Jonathan leaned forward to his brother's level. Will fixed Jonathan's hair before giving him a quick thumbs up. Jonathan grinned nervously as he made his way over to the front door of the Harrington household.

He knocked on the door three times before it was answered. Mrs. Harrington opened the door to find Jonathan,"Can I help you?" The woman asked him. Jonathan cleared his throat,"Uh, yes. Is Reagan t-there?" Jonathan asked quietly, gripping onto the flowers as he waited on the doorstep.

Mrs. Harrington smiled and nodded her head at him,"Yes, she is." She said, turning around. "Reagan!" The woman called down her daughter. "Mom, if it's Carol, I really don't want to talk to her right now." Reagan pointed out as she made her way down the stairs. When Jonathan saw her again, her eyes were still red and her cheeks were a little puffy, but he still believed that she looked beautiful.

"I'll be back." Mrs. Harrington disappeared from the door, leaving Reagan and Jonathan alone.

Reagan eyed the flowers in Jonathan's hand before looking up to meet his eyes. "What are you doing here, Jonathan?" She asked him. Jonathan swallowed a lump in his throat,"WillyougototheSnowBallwithme?" He jumbled out, confusing Reagan. She narrowed her eyes,"What?" She asked him. Jonathan took a deep breath,"Will... you... go... to... the–" "Jonathan, now you're speaking too slow." Reagan pointed out.

He looked into her eyes, still completely terrified, but knowing this was something he had to say. "Will you do me the honor of going to the Snow Ball with me? I want to be your date, Reagan. I want to go with you and no one else. Do you want to go with me?" He asked, completely honest as he didn't break eye contact.

She looked at him in mild shock. But finally, a smile grew on her face.

"Yes."


	13. The Past is the Past: Part 2

**A/N: This fic was published a year ago! Happy anniversary to Uncanny! Here is part two of the one shot, and while it might not have a very happy ending, at least we can remember Jonathan and Reagan do end up together in 1983...**

 **Anways, back to 1979.**

* * *

For the first time in a long time, Reagan was happy.

It was a funny feeling, like she unburdened by everything that seemed to weigh her down before. She even managed to stay happy despite the fact that Carol had continued to nag her about her appearance. She constantly told the girl to let her hair down and would steal Reagan's glasses as often as she could.

Normally, Reagan would mind, but for some reason she didn't.

"Are you ever going to tell me who asked you out to the Snow Ball?" Carol asked as they walked their bikes down the street. It was December, and the streets were either filled with too much snow, slush, or ice. It made riding their bikes to school harder but it made going to school easier for Reagan. While she loved riding her bike, she couldn't deny that having asthma didn't make it extremely hard for her.

She smiled shyly,"You'll just have to wait until the Snow Ball." Reagan said, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink as they made their way to school. Carol was quick to catch onto this and grinned excitedly,"Oh my God, it's a boy you like isn't it?" She asked her. Reagan shrugged her shoulders a little,"I mean... he's sweet and smart... and I can't believe he asked me, you know?" The girl confessed. Carol giggled,"Oh, I'm so happy for you!" She cheered, reaching over to wrap an arm around Reagan.

Reagan was a little surprised by Carol's actions. The redhead was being oddly nice, accepting her with open arms now that she had a date to the dance. At the back of her mind, Reagan kept thinking that wasn't how best friends should act towards each other, but the girl really had nothing to compare it to. Carol had been her best friend forever, and while her and Steve were super close, he was her twin brother before he was her friend.

"Thanks... I think." Reagan said as they finally reached their school. The dance was only a few days away and it was evident by the gratuitous amount of posters promoting it. Every preteen in sight was talking about it and who they were bringing. Some rushed last minute to ask out anyone who didn't have a date already. And the very few, very rare, ignored all news of the dance.

When he started this year, Jonathan thought he would be one of those kids who didn't care about the dance. In fact, he didn't care about the dance. It was stupid and people made a too big of a deal out of it. But Reagan cared about it and he cared about her, so when he saw her parking her bike with Carol, he decided to approach her.

"I'll catch up with you." Reagan told Carol, noticing Jonathan in the distance approaching her. Carol nodded her head, taking off in the direction of their first period class together. Jonathan came up to Reagan with a smile on his face,"Hey." He greeted shyly. Reagan smiled back at him, waiting for him to say something, but Jonathan just stared at her. "Jonathan?" She asked. "Yeah?" He replied. "Were you going to say something...?" Reagan trailed off.

He blinked in embarrassment,"Oh, right, yeah." He rushed out, his face flushing. "I was wondering what color your dress is. My mom says that the best thing to do is to get you flowers that match." Jonathan felt a little silly asking her for such a detail, but he didn't want to screw up the night knowing it was so important to her. "It's pink. My dad got it for me." She said proudly, thinking of that perfect dress her and Carol had saw in the store that thankfully her mother had mentioned to her father.

Jonathan nodded his head,"Thanks for letting me know... pink flowers then." He said, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "I can't wait." She told him with a grin.

As she walked him walk away, Reagan let out a small giggle that she couldn't contain. It was so weird having things work out so well for her. Things like this usually only worked out for Steve and not for her, but this time was different. Reagan was beginning to believe that her and Jonathan Byers together would be the best thing that would ever happen to her.

* * *

"Do you like her?" Will asked, watching as his brother got dressed. Jonathan stared in the mirror, looking down at his tie hopelessly. He paused and turned back to look at his brother. "Reagan? You... you know I do, Scoob." Jonathan said simply.

Will shook his head,"No, not like that... I mean- do you... love her? Like... like Mom and Dad used to?" He questioned, looking up at his brother hopefully. Jonathan pursed his lips together, knowing what his brother was hoping for. It's something that he had given up on a long time ago. Will wanted a family again, or at least he wanted the family his friends had. He wanted to have both parents, one way or another. He wanted for his family to get along and love each other.

It was a heavy burden for a twelve year old boy to carry but Jonathan promised himself a long time ago on the day that his father left that he would always look out for Will no matter what.

"Reagan's... special. She's the best. That's something we both know. But you don't have to worry about losing her. No matter what happens between us, whether or not we're together like that or not... she loves you. I can tell." At that moment, it was something he was truly sure of. Reagan didn't hide herself around Will. Jonathan knew that to be true.

And that was the one thing that would never change even if Reagan did.

Joyce appeared in the door frame, looking over her eldest. "You look so dapper in that suit." She complimented with a grin as she made her way over to Jonathan. She leaned down, tying his tie into place. "Thanks, Mom." Jonathan smiled small, looking down at the tie. He looked over at his mother and brother,"Do I look Snow Ball ready?" He asked them.

Both of them nodded their head eagerly. "You're so handsome." Joyce fawned, pulling her eldest into a tight embrace. "Mom!" Jonathan protested, afraid she would mess his hair and wrinkle his suit. "Come here!" Joyce chuckled loudly and brought her youngest into the hug. Will giggled happily at this family moment, and he knew they would be fine without his father around.

* * *

The night of the dance.

Why was this so important to her?

Reagan remembered what it was like last year and there had been no pressure. Carol and her even picked similar dresses so they would match when they showed up together. They danced together for fun and made jokes about the older girls who went crazy over dates and their dresses.

It had been fun and suddenly now she was realizing that the night no longer seemed fun to her. She almost felt bad, because when she realized that she also realized that the Snow Ball wasn't an event that Jonathan was likely to attend.

He liked the same kind of books she liked. He loved photography and music. He talked about New York City even though he had never been there. She knew he wanted to go to school there.

She all these things about him just by paying attention and listening. Even though they rarely talked, Reagan knew him. And she knew he wouldn't like a dance like the Snow Ball.

Which meant that the only reason he would go is for her.

And it was in that moment that Reagan Harrington started thinking that Jonathan Byers might like her.

"You almost ready?" Her mother asked, knocking on the door. Mrs. Harrington stepped inside to see Reagan putting on her new white kitten heels her mother had gotten her originally for church but decided to wear tonight. Reagan nodded her head, standing up and smoothing down the long silk pink dress. It was light, matching the soft blush on her cheeks. She moved a loose curl behind her ear,"Good?" She asked her mother.

Mrs. Harrington teared up a little. "I'm going to get my camera!" She announced loudly, rushing to her bedroom. Reagan chuckled lightly, not noticing her mother's presence being replaced by her father's. She looked up, over at her father who supported a soft smile on his face. "You look beautiful, sweetie." He said, opening his arms up his daughter.

Reagan ran over to give him a hug, knowing she couldn't thank him even for buying her the dress of her dreams. Mr. Harrington gave her a quick squeeze before pulling away. "Steven!" The man called and he led his daughter out of her room. Steve emerged from bedroom, sauntering around and showing off how well dressed he looked for the dance.

"Bond. James Bond." Steve said in his best British accent, and he made his way over to his twin and extended his hand to her. "Ah, Sissy Spacek. Watch out for pig's blood tonight, darling." Steve joked which only made Reagan roll her eyes. "You're such a dork." She said, shoving his hand back. Steve giggled, throwing his arm around her shoulder. "You look amazing, Wonder Twin. Mystery beau is one lucky guy." He said. "And Jodi Marsh is one unfortunate girl." Reagan retorted with a smirk.

Their mother soon returned. "Oh, stay like that! I'm going to take so many pictures!" Mrs. Harrington gushed. Her husband reached over, touching the small of her back,"Remember, I have to drive Steve to the Marsh girl's house. We don't want to be late." He reminded her. She rolled her eyes,"Pictures of my children come first." She insisted, snapping a few shots of her children together.

"Mom." Steve reminded her as well, making Mrs. Harrington sigh in disappointment. "Fine, fine! Go, go!" She urged the two. Steve smiled, looking back to his sister,"I'll see you there, alright?" He told her before disappearing down the stairs with their father. Reagan made her way down the stairs, knowing all there was left to do was to wait for Jonathan to arrive.

It wasn't too long before there was a knock on the door. "No, I want to get it!" Reagan shouted, beating her mother to the front door. She opened it and smiled at the sight of Jonathan. "Jon," Reagan breathed out, pulling him into a hug that surprised him. Jonathan's breath hitched as she took him by surprise, shocking him almost as much as the kiss on the cheek she gave him.

"R-Reagan, I got you f-f-flowers." He felt like a blubbering fool as he held out the light pink rose corsage to her. Reagan grinned however, taking the corsage carefully into her hands and slipping it on. "It's beautiful." She admired. Jonathan smiled hopefully at that.

Mrs. Harrington bumped into their moment,"Picture?" She asked, holding up her camera. "One." Reagan insisted, clearly embarrassed by her mother. The woman relented, holding up the camera. "Alright then, stand together. Jonathan, put your arm around her." Mrs. Harrington directed them. Jonathan awkwardly reached over, putting his arm around her waist. He put a nervous smile on his face at first, before noticing Reagan out of the corner of his eye.

He looked over at her, recognizing the genuine smile on her face. It wasn't something he often saw, but he knew what it was. Happiness. She was happy.

And for some reason he knew it was because of him.

Or at least, that's what he hoped for most in the world.

The flash went off, capturing that moment for years to come. One day they would look back on this and be as happy they were in that moment. There was no doubt part of him would still be nervous, as Reagan always made some part of him nervous. But he would be with her, and that was all that mattered.

Not what happened next.

* * *

It was magical. At least, it was to Reagan. Jonathan's vision was much less biased, and he walked into the dance knowing exactly what it looked like. It was the gym, which no matter how hard any janitor tried would always smell like the _gym_. They had placed a disco ball in the center and tried to decorate the place so it wouldn't look like it was. White Christmas lights hung around, as well as plenty of white streamers and paper snowflakes that took the dance committee six weeks to finish. He had to admit, a lot of effort had gone into the dance and it wasn't like it was terrible.

There was punch.

Jonathan felt suddenly uncomfortable when people started looking at him. It seemed that when he cleaned up, he was almost unrecognizable as the weird loner he was known as. Too many people were looking at him and it wasn't something he was used to. He reached for Reagan hand for protection, and she gave him a tight squeeze and a smile, unaware that people were looking at him weird.

For her, he was still just Jonathan. It didn't matter if he dressed up fancy and had styled his hair for the occasion. He still had the same smile, which was the only thing that mattered to her. Unfortunately, those thoughts weren't exactly clear to Jonathan and he was started to panic when he saw a group of her friends watching him.

"Is that-"

A gasp.

"Jonathan Byers?!" He knew the annoying redhead as soon as she approached him and Reagan. Carol stamped her feet like a two year old,"Your mystery beau is these- _freak_!" She exploded much like how Jonathan imagined a volcano would. The music turned to a popular dance tune, which made Jonathan no longer the center of attention.

Reagan simply kept a hold of his hand. "He's not a freak, Carol. He's my date." She defended, looking to Jonathan before looking back to Carol. "If you have a problem with that, well... that's– that's your problem." Reagan stated, leading him away from her as they approached the dance floor.

His jaw dropped a little. "That was..." Jonathan couldn't find the word for it. The only people who had ever defended him like that was his family. He never really thought he could count on anyone else. When he looked up at her however, Jonathan noticed how pale she was. "I can't breathe." She wheezed, and it was only now he realized that standing up to Carol had caused Reagan so much panic that she went into an asthma attack.

"Oh." He realized, concerned and rushing to his pocket to grab her inhaler. She had given him it because she wanted to leave her jacket in the car but knew she would dancing and would eventually need it. "Thank you." Reagan breathed heavily, taking a few puffs before relaxing after a few minutes. She then smiled small and lowered her inhaler. Reagan looked around the dance, looking at everyone they knew who were there. She finally looked back at him.

"Can we enjoy this night, Jonathan? Carols be damned." She asked him hopefully. Jonathan smiled, a little uneasy, but he still nodded his head at her,"Carols be damned." He agreed.

* * *

"This is the last song of the night."

It was a slow song, something by Elton John, so everyone who showed up with a date rushed to the dance floor. Steve hesitated for a moment as he stood to the side. Tommy looked at him with an annoyed expression. Both of them had become sick of their dates, but there was very little either boy could do. "Tommy." Carol whined, moving over to tug on the boy's suit. "It's the last song." The redhead pointed out, crossing her arms over her chest. Tommy sighed before looking to the dance floor. "Fine." He relented, which resulted in Carol letting out a high pitched squeal that was probably Steve's least favorite sound in the world.

Steve looked over to his date,"You want to dance too?" He asked as he watched his best friend leave with Carol towards the dance floor. Jodi Marsh looked over at him before shaking her head. "This dance is lame. I can't wait until high school." She sighed, barely looking up at him. Steve frowned slightly, looking back to the dance floor. Throughout the night, there had been one couple who failed to get away from the dance floor. It was her sister and that Byers boy.

He never cared for Jonathan Byers. Steve thought he was weird. He especially thought he wasn't good enough for the likes of his sister. But Steve couldn't deny the fact that they were having fun. Whenever Reagan wasn't having fun, she would usually seek out Steve to save her because even being annoyed was better than being bored. But she hadn't talked to him all night. She only hung out with Jonathan Byers. And as much as he didn't like it, he understood why.

"Well... if you won't dance with me..." Steve tried to get his date's attention once again, but the pretty girl wasn't paying attention to him. After all, she was using him as much as he was using her.

The boy scanned the side lines for any stray girls who didn't have dates who'd might like to dance with _the_ Steve Harrington. He paused before locking eyes with his target, and he moved over to approach. The brunette welcomed him with a warm smile, her blue eyes shining bright. "Can I help you?" She asked as he leaned his hand against the wall besides her. "Yeah, I was wondering if you wanted to–" "Nancy." Another girl interrupted him, handing Nancy a glass of punch.

Barb stared at Steve weirdly and he raised both hands in defense. "I wasn't doing anything wrong." He pointed out. The tall girl adjusted her glasses,"Unlikely." She observed. "Don't you have a date?" Barb questioned. Steve frowned and nodded his head, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He looked to Nancy before sighing,"Guess it wasn't meant to be, huh?" He joked charmingly. Steve smiled at her, pointing at her,"You look very pretty tonight, Nancy Wheeler." He complimented, looking to Barb. "You look very beautiful too, Barbara." Steve said before turning on his heel and leaving the girls alone.

Nancy slightly bumped her friend's shoulder with the back of her hand. "Barb." She scolded, blushing slightly as she walked Steve Harrington walk away from her.

Over on the dance floor, Reagan could feel Carol's eyes on her. She knew the redhead was glaring at her, but she refused to take her eyes off of Jonathan. They had been having such a good time that night that she knew she didn't want to let anything ruin it for her. Reagan suddenly stopped swaying, which alerted Jonathan that was something was wrong. He furrowed his brows at her,"What's wrong?" He asked. Reagan pulled away slightly, but kept a hold of his hand. "I want to get out of here." She admitted.

"But it's the last song. Isn't that important to you?" Jonathan asked, a little confused. He knew that this night was important to her, so wouldn't the last song be too?

She stopped to smile at him, a little surprised that she could see that he cared. It wasn't like her to notice when that happened with the people who cared about her. Reagan took his other hand so she had a good hold on both of his hands. She met his eyes,"This night is important to me, mostly because I want to have fun with the person I chose to go with. Carols be damned, remember? Well... Snow Ball be damned. Let's go anywhere else in the school right now. Anywhere but here." She said.

Jonathan didn't have to be asked twice. That was the thing he had wanted most all night, other than making sure that Reagan was happy and having a good time.

He looked around, noticing Carol's eyes on them as she went to go grab a drink from the punch bowl. "Do you think we can make a run for it?" Jonathan asked eagerly, his eyes switching from the door to Carol. Reagan nodded her head, a grin of excitement on her face. "Definitely." She confirmed. "Okay, on three... one... two..."

"Three!" Reagan shrieked with a giggle.

The two kids took off running from the dance floor. They headed for the doors, hoping to escape everyone and the last song of the night. Carol noticed this, intending to stop her friend from going anywhere with Jonathan Byers. "Reagan!" Carol shouted over the music, trying to stop their path but Jonathan kept running forward, dragging Reagan along behind him. "Out of the way, Carol!" Jonathan yelled, noticing that she was right in their way. "No way, you freak–" Carol's words were cut off by Jonathan pushing her back and making her glass of red punch spill all over her blue dress.

Carol let out a scream, knowing that the punch would never come out of that kind of blue fabric. She began wailing and while Tommy tried to console her, he stopped after she slapped him away and took off running towards the bathroom.

Reagan and Jonathan made their way out of the gym, still running and giggling over what just happened. "I know a way up to the roof." Jonathan paused, out of breath, to inform her. Reagan nodded her head at him,"Perfect." She breathed out and he smiled before leading her there. They didn't stop running until they made their way up the stairs to the door to the roof. The cold air hit their faces and they both chuckled.

"How did you know the door was unlocked?" Reagan breathed heavily, holding her chest as she looked around. Jonathan shrugged his shoulders,"Honestly, they never lock it." He chuckled, still panting as well. He paused to look at her, knowing that all that running couldn't be good for her. "Do you need–" "No." Reagan was quick to answer as he approached her. "Are you sure?" He double-checked.

She nodded, looking up to see that a gentle snow was falling. Reagan took a deep breath before reaching up to catch the snowflakes with her figures. "Now this... this is a Snow Ball." She said, looking around to see that Hawkins that was covered in a thin layer of pure white snow. She smiled at the view, before looking back to Jonathan. "Do you come up here often?" She asked him. He nodded his head back at her,"Yeah... I... I take pictures. I– I wish I could take a picture of you right now." Jonathan confessed.

"Really?" Reagan asked him. "My hair's probably mess after all that." She giggled lightly and he shook his head. "No... no, you're beautiful, Reagan. Always." Jonathan told her sincerely. A deep blush creeped onto her face, and Reagan hoped he would mistake it for the cold weather. He took a small step closer to her, meeting her eyes when she looked back up at him. "I mean it." He stated firmly. Reagan nodded her head up at him, seeing the truth in his eyes. "I know." She realized.

Jonathan should've hesitated. Normally, he would've. But in that moment he didn't.

He took another step forward, closing the distance between them and pressing his lips against hers. It was both their first kiss, so each of them were sloppy and quick, and pulled away too soon. Jonathan looked at her with wide eyes, as the part of him that would've hesitated returned. Reagan just smiled at him however, which made him smile too.

* * *

Nothing could ruin the night of the Snow Ball.

She tried to remember that really hard when Monday morning came around.

While that special night should've changed everything between Reagan and Jonathan for the better, it only ended up changing everything between them for the worst. Any chance for them to be together then was squashed by Reagan the minute she entered school before first bell.

Reagan kept thinking that if only Carol hadn't gone to her house over the weekend, and if only she hadn't let her in to talk, that things could've been different. But looking back now, it was her fault. She should've never listened to anything Carol told her.

Jonathan stood by his locker, opening it up to retrieve some books inside for his morning classes. Once he closed the door, he noticed Reagan in the distance and smiled. After the dance, they had promised to meet up on Monday, but he was unaware that someone else had gotten to her first.

He was both eager and terrified when he crossed the school hallway to meet her. He felt completely different now, hopeful even. Jonathan could imagine the life they would have together now that they kissed. He didn't know what it meant exactly. He couldn't imagine them being together as a couple right away. But at least now they would be friends, maybe even the best of friends. And they would only get closer until they did become a couple in the end.

And then he would love her. And she would love him.

But by the time he got to her, seeing the look on his face changed his mind.

"You're not wearing your glasses." Jonathan noticed, furrowing his brows in confusion. It was unlike her to do that. She was dressed nicer than she normally was too. Reagan looked down at the floor before nodding her head. "I don't need them." She said simply. The boy frowned,"Of course you do." He insisted.

She looked up, meeting his eyes. Reagan shook her head,"I don't." She finally said, and it was only then Jonathan realized that they weren't really talking about her glasses.

Before he could say anything else, Carol walked in through the front doors. "Reagan!" She called over in a cheery voice, running up to the girl and linking arms with her. Carol noticed Jonathan and snorted a little. "God, what were you thinking?" She said, turning to Reagan, like Jonathan wasn't even standing there. Reagan stared at him, and he could tell she was sorry, but it didn't matter. It didn't make it hurt any less.

"I don't know." Reagan said, looking over to Carol. The redhead smirked, leading her away from Jonathan. "I'm so glad you're over that... phase. You look nice today, you know. Did you think about what I told you? You'd look great with blonde hair." Carol chatted up Reagan, even though the other girl could barely form responses after her conversation with Jonathan. He should've realized that after Monday, he should've given up on her. It would be a long time before Reagan would go back to the girl she was the night of the Snow Ball.

Jonathan regretted not realizing that the same girl never left. She was only trapped by fear and the friends she thought she needed to be happy. He frowned, clenching his fist. The boy knew he would try again to get to her. But after being ignored and shot down a few times more whenever he tried to talk to her, Jonathan knew she was a ship that had sailed right past him.

Reagan stopped in her tracks while walking with Carol, pausing to look behind her. She watched the boy as he took off down another hall and she should've recognized right away that he was heading to the roof, but at that time she didn't. She only recognized the fact that she blew him off. Years later, she would know in her heart that she did the wrong thing. That she was a coward for not proving him wrong of whatever awful thing he must've thought of her then.

But she couldn't changed what happened... because no matter how many times she looked at it, it still _happened_.

And no matter how much Reagan would want otherwise, the past is the past.


	14. AN: The Sequel

**A/N: Hello all my beautiful readers!**

 **Are you already missing Uncanny? No need to worry!**

 **The sequel is out! I repeat, THE SEQUEL IS OUT!**

 **And what should you do? You should definitely go to my profile immediately and follow and favorite it as soon as you can because I will be giving you new chapters to enjoy. We have more of our favorite characters, and of course more Reagan which is just amazing. I'm also will be introducing a new original character in my sequel, and she's cool, so check it out.**

 **Anyways, I love you all, and please enjoy the sequel to Uncanny...** ** _Unearthly_** **.**


End file.
